I'm With You
by Mittens no Hikari
Summary: [Complete] After a rescue, Serenity falls for Yugi. She's with him, even if neither he nor anyone else knows it. But as it becomes dangerous for both Yugi and anyone with him, can Serenity help him through one of the riskiest situations of their lives?
1. Waitin' in the Dark

Um... hi? I'm back with a new story... =^_^=  
  
Please, if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all... I don't want my confidence completely shattered... Anywho...  
  
\Thinking\: Thoughts  
  
**Lalala**: song lyrics  
  
Summary:  
  
After he comes to her 'rescue', Serenity begins to fall for Yugi. She's with him, even if neither he nor anyone else knows it. But as it becomes increasingly dangerous for both Yugi and anyone with him, will Serenity be able to help him through one of the most risky situations of either of their lives?  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh, any characters from said show, or Avril Lavigne's "I'm With You." So please, don't sue me as I have little of monetary value.  
  
A-hem...  
  
"I'm With You"  
  
Chapter One  
  
**I'm standin' on the bridge  
  
I'm waitin' in the dark**  
  
Serenity Wheeler shivered, her arms wrapped tightly around herself. Her wet, chestnut hair hung limply in her face, and she didn't bother to push it away. Her jade-green eyes filled with tears as she looked around her. The water below was shadowy and dark, looking as if it could swallow any unsuspecting passerby into its murky black depths. Clouds overset the night sky, the comforting faces of the moon and stars hidden from view. \Someone help me... I'm so scared...\  
  
**I thought that you'd be here by now.**  
  
"Joey?" she stammered out, her voice cracking as she tried not to cry. "Joey, where are you?" \Why hasn't he found me? Joey promised he'd look out for me, and now he's not here.\ Realizing how unfair these thoughts were, she shook her head. \Joey's gone out of his way so many times to help me out and be there for me. He's been the best big brother I could ever hope for. The only reason I'm out here is because I thought I was invincible, and now I'm hopelessly lost.\ Scanning her surroundings, Serenity didn't recognize a single thing. She shivered again. \I feel so alone...\  
  
**There's nothin' but the rain  
  
No footsteps on the ground I'm listening but there's no sound**  
  
The soft splashing of raindrops was all her sensitive ears could hear. "Is anyone out there?" she ventured, voice shaking all the more as she tried in vain to hold back her frightened tears. Desperately, she listened hard for something- anything- other than the incessant rain, but there was nothing, not even a far-off car motor. The bridge was deserted. "Please? Anyone?" Her voice grew increasingly more hysterical as she began to cry, tears mingling with the raindrops on her face.  
  
**Isn't anyone tryin' to find me?  
  
Won't somebody come take me home?**  
  
\Where's Joey?\ she thought to herself. \Is he even looking for me? Is anyone? Is anyone else even alive?\ She wiped the rain from her frightened eyes as she blew on her hands, trying to warm up. \I just want to go home.\  
  
**It's a damp cold night  
  
Tryin' to figure out this life  
  
Take me by the hand, take me somewhere new  
  
Don't know who you are but I  
  
I'm with you **  
  
Serenity could no longer fight back her panic. She sat down right where she was, in a freezing puddle of rainwater, and began to sob. \I just want to go home...\ she sneezed, the cold finally getting to her. "I just want to go home," she repeated, this time aloud. \I want to hold someone's hand and have them bring me back to where I belong. Why does this happen to me? Why do I seem destined to have bad luck?\ Sniffling, she raised her chestnut head from her knees and looked around her. \Staying here isn't going to help me. I'm going to try and get home.\ Pushing herself to her knees, she stumbled out of the glare of the lone street light and into the darkness beyond.  
  
**I'm looking for a place  
  
Searching for a face Is anybody here I know**  
  
"Joey? Are you there? Tristan? Mai? Duke? Anybody? Please!" she shouted above the pouring rain. Her wet hair hung in her face as she darted her eyes frantically around her. There were people nearby now, but not anyone who cared about one lost, lonely girl trying to find her way home. Faceless figures hurried by, not even directing a glance toward her as they rushed to get out of the storm.  
  
**'Cause nothing's going right  
  
And everything's a mess And no one likes to be alone**  
  
\Why was I so stupid?\ Serenity asked herself as she trudged through the silvery sheets of rain. \I had to go off by myself...\  
  
***Flashback***  
  
"Thanks for inviting us, Tristan," Serenity said, giving the older boy a smile.  
  
Tristan rubbed his head embarrassedly. "It was nothin', Serenity. Say, if you're not busy, would you..."  
  
"Like to come with me..." Duke Devlin interrupted, elbowing past Tristan and earning a murderous glare from the teen for his efforts.  
  
"Hey!" Tristan protested, shoving Duke back.  
  
"Move it, loser!" the black-haired boy shot back, purposely bumping into Tristan and knocking him into the wall.  
  
"Why I oughta..." Tristan growled.  
  
"Would you two quit it?" Joey had a protective arm around Serenity as he continued to yell at his friends. "Serenity's busy, all right? She's not goin' anywhere with either of you two!" Turning, he marched his younger sister down the front steps as Duke and Tristan began to argue again.  
  
"Joey..." Serenity protested, the smile gone from her face. "Why don't you let me answer for myself?"  
  
"You're my little sister, Serenity. I gotta look out for you, and I say you're not going out with either of them," Joey said sharply, ignoring Serenity's deepening glare.  
  
"Joey!" Serenity protested, wrenching her shoulders away from his grip. "Why can't I decide who I want to be friends with or not? Why do you have to make all my decisions for me? I may be younger than you, but that doesn't make me helpless! I can see perfectly well now, and that means I can see that you don't trust me to make my own decisions!"  
  
Joey looked stunned at hearing his gentle younger sister speak to him like that. "Serenity, I..."  
  
"Let me finish!" she said angrily, olive eyes flashing with anger. "Joey, you may be the older brother and all, but I should still be able to choose my friends for myself! Why do you seem to think I'm powerless?" She had her hands clenched in fists at her sides as she glared fiercely at her older brother. Finally, she broke the heated stare between them and whirled around, chestnut hair floating behind her. As she began to run, she dimly heard, "Serenity! Wait!" "I'll find my way home!" she shouted back over her shoulder. "I'm not helpless!"  
  
She could hear Joey running behind her, but she was smaller and could slip through crowds more easily. She darted across the street just before the 'Walk' signal flashed to 'Don't Walk.' As she continued to run, darting through the crowds, she finally realized: \I don't know where I am.\  
  
***End Flashback***  
  
\That was quite possibly the dumbest thing I've ever done in my life,\ Serenity reflected. \I was so mean to Joey, after he did so much for me... I wouldn't be surprised if he never wanted to see me again. I'm so sorry, big brother... I know you were just looking out for me... and now I'm all alone because of my own stupid pride.\  
  
**Isn't anyone tryin' to find me?  
  
Won't somebody come take me home?  
  
It's a damp cold night  
  
Tryin' to figure out this life  
  
Take me by the hand, take me somewhere new  
  
Don't know who you are but I  
  
I'm with you**  
  
Serenity was thoroughly soaked now. \I don't recognize a single one of these street signs or buildings or anything!\ "Please..." she whispered aloud as she continued her desperate search. "Someone be looking for me, and come around the corner right now." She waited silently for a moment, frozen in the act of taking her next step, peering through the rain. When no one appeared, she almost laughed at herself.  
  
**Why is everything so confusing?  
Maybe I'm just out of my mind  
Yeah, yeah, yeah**  
  
"I give up!" she screamed at the starless sky. "I can't find anyone, or anything! I don't know where in the world I am, and no one cares and no one's looking for me!"  
  
**It's a damp cold night  
Tryin' to figure out this life  
Take me by the hand, take me somewhere new  
Don't know who you are, but I  
I'm with you**  
  
Serenity's muscles burned with exhaustion. She had been walking all day. Finally, crushed in body and spirit, she put her back to a wall and slid to the cold cement, crying her heart out. Through the rain, she thought she heard a faint voice calling, "Serenity!"  
  
**It's a damp cold night  
Tryin' to figure out this life  
Take me by the hand, take me somewhere new  
Don't know who you are, but I  
I'm with you**  
  
She continued to cry, face buried in her hands. Everything seemed so hopeless.  
Suddenly she felt a hand on her shoulder. She choked on a sob, darting her eyes up sharply. Her heart pounded in her ears- she was terrified. Until she saw...  
"Yu-Yugi? Is that really you?" she whispered, olive eyes wide and hardly daring to hope.  
"Serenity! Are you all right?" Yugi's violet eyes were worried and upset as he knelt down next to the crying girl.  
"Yugi!" She couldn't believe it. Someone had found her. "Oh, Yugi!" She clung to his arm, knocking him off balance. He hit the wall with a thud and fell into a sitting position next to her. Easing himself toward her, Yugi gently and almost apprehensively put an arm around her shaking shoulders as she cried into his chest.  
  
**I'm with you**  
  
The rain poured in torrents around them. An icy blast of wind blew freezing water into their faces. Immediately Yugi shifted in front of Serenity, shielding her from the worst of the blast. Her eyes widened as she looked at his face.  
Yugi turned and met her eyes as her sobs slowed and finally halted. "Are you all right?" he asked. "Joey and I have been so worried!"  
"Joey's looking for me too?" she sniffled, laying her head on Yugi's wet shoulder.  
"He told me you had a fight and that you ran off. He's been terrified all day- we've both been combing the city for you. He didn't say much, but knowing him as long as I have, I'd say he's definitely blaming himself."  
"I feel like such a rotten sister," Serenity whispered. "I yelled at him, ran off and got myself lost, and then he had to spend all day looking for me. Why was I so stupid?"  
  
**It's a damp cold night  
Tryin' to figure out this life**  
  
"Serenity, it's okay." Startled, she looked at Yugi. His violet eyes were full of compassion and understanding. "He understands. If he didn't, he wouldn't have been looking for you, would he?"  
Speechless, she could only shake her head.  
"Don't worry, Serenity. I know the way to your house from here, and... you okay? Can you walk, you think?" Yugi was suddenly worried again, stumbling to his feet and offering a hand to Serenity.  
"Yeah... I'm-" she sneezed suddenly, water from her hair flying every which way.  
"You look like you're freezing. Here- wear my jacket, at least," Yugi offered, peeling it off and pressing it into her hands. She pulled it on slowly- it was wet, true, but at least it protected her from the wind. Slowly she put her hand in his, and he pulled her to her feet, an arm protectively around her back to keep her steady.  
  
**Take me by the hand, take me somewhere new**  
  
\He doesn't look all that warm himself,\ Serenity thought. Yugi was pale and shivering. Water soaked his tri-colored hair and dripped in his face, his golden bangs limp and matted. He looked exhausted, but he gave her a smile, violet eyes bright despite his tired face.  
  
**Don't know who you are  
But I  
I'm with you**  
  
"Here, lean on me. Joey'll strangle me if you get yourself hurt," Yugi said teasingly, as Serenity tried to stay up on trembling legs. He flinched slightly as Serenity leaned heavily on him, his slight figure shaking with the strain. He didn't say a word, though, as Serenity and Yugi began the slow walk to her home.  
  
**I'm with you**  
  
\He's so sweet... and he spent hours in the rain looking for me. I was so afraid, and Yugi found me to bring me home.\ Serenity smiled softly for the first time in hours and held tighter to Yugi's hand.  
  
**I'm with you.**  
  
***  
  
Um... please review? Pretty please? I'd like to continue this one... Goodbye for now! ^_^ 


	2. Heart's Crush and Head Cold

Hi again! I'm baaaaaack!  
  
First and foremost, thank you to those who reviewed:  
  
ChaosDragon2: Thanks for the encouragement! ^_^  
  
jster1983: Hmm...*ponders* I got it! Serenity and Yugi aren't that far apart, but even if she is a little taller, she's got her elbow on his shoulder. And if that doesn't work, she can slouch a little.  
  
A Watcher: Thanks for the compliment! Gracias!  
  
Anime-crazed33: I love this pairing too! They're so cute together! Thanks for taking the time to read my fiction!  
  
All other potential reviewers: Please don't flame me, 'cause that'll destroy my confidence. Thankies!  
  
\Et cetera\: Thoughts  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh. C'mon, you didn't honestly believe I did, did you?  
  
"I'm With You"  
  
Chapter Two:  
  
"Hey, little sister!"  
Serenity wrinkled her nose and rolled over. "Just five more minutes." she mumbled.  
"You're gonna be late! You're starting at Domino High today, remember?"  
Serenity sat bolt upright, eyes shooting open. "That's right! The transfer finally went through!" She yawned and swung her legs over the edge of the bed.  
"Sheesh, sis, you're even less of a morning person than me!" Joey playfully tweaked her nose as she yawned again. "C'mon, breakfast is ready and everything!"  
"I'm coming." Serenity muttered, stumbling over to her dresser. She let out a yelp as her bare feet landed on something cold and wet. Recoiling, she stepped backwards and bent over to pick up the damp something on her floor. \What's this? \ Suddenly, a flash of realization hit her sleepy brain. She remembered all day outside...all night stumbling around aimlessly in the rain...and Yugi coming for her...this was his jacket, not hers. No wonder she didn't recognize it.  
  
***Flashback***  
  
When she had finally gotten home with Yugi's aid, there had been a tearful reunion on both sides. Joey had promised not to make decisions for her again; she had apologized over and over for losing her temper. Then, just as Serenity was beginning to nod off, Yugi let out a loud sneeze.  
"Sorry." he said, trying to stifle the next one.  
"Yuge, you're soaking wet! You want to stay and dry off for a while?" Joey questioned, taking a good look at his small friend for the first time since they'd arrived. Yugi was shivering and he looked pale and tired. Nevertheless, he smiled gratefully as he shook his head.  
"I need to get going." he said, getting back to his feet. "It's late already and Grandpa will be looking for me. Serenity, I'm glad you're all right." He directed his sunny smile at her this time.  
"Yugi...I forgot to thank you," Serenity blurted out as the thought suddenly struck her.  
"Yeah, Yuge, thanks so much for findin' her," Joey cut in, his eyes betraying his profound relief.  
Yugi shrugged. "I'm just glad I could help. See you at school tomorrow?" As Joey nodded, Yugi disappeared out the front door into the still-pouring rain, calling, "Take care!"  
"You too!" Serenity called suddenly, startling both Joey and herself. As she continued to watch him, Joey shut the door with a resounding thud.  
"Bedtime, little sis," he said, taking her shoulders and pushing her up the stairs. Unlike normal nights, she didn't protest. She was too sleepy. Bed sounded awfully good.  
  
***End Flashback***  
  
\I didn't do the best job of thanking him, especially after what he did for me. I hope he got home all right, \ Serenity thought worriedly. Remembering his smile and his violet eyes, she blushed, then shook herself.  
  
\No way. I can't have a crush on him! He's older than me, and I barely know him, and...he's so sweet...whoa! Where did that come from? \ Serenity was frozen in place, holding Yugi's jacket in her hands. \Maybe...I really do like him...but he could never like me...could he? \ Lost in thought, Serenity drifted out of her room. Happening to catch sight of her, Joey's eyes widened and he grabbed the collar of her pajamas seconds before she would have fallen down the stairs.  
"What're you doin' Serenity?" Joey reprimanded his younger sister. "You're totally spacing out! Something wrong?"  
"No." Serenity said, almost automatically. "But...Joey?"  
"Hmm?" Joey acknowledged her question as he began to make his own way down the stairs.  
Serenity opened her mouth...and shut it again. This was too embarrassing. "Never mind," she said, following her older brother. Joey gave her a puzzled look but didn't press the question.  
They sat down at the breakfast table, where Joey immediately grabbed everything in reach. Serenity grinned. Her brother's appetite was legendary. Suddenly Yugi drifted back into her mind, and she ducked to hide her blush. \May as well.\  
"Joey?"  
Joey swallowed the toast in his mouth and gave her a teasing grin. "This sounds familiar."  
"Can you tell me about Yugi?" she blurted, not meeting her brother's eyes.  
The smile faded from Joey's face, replaced with confusion. "Why?"  
"Just 'cause, you know, he helped me, and, I don't know, he seemed really nice." Serenity realized suddenly she was babbling and shut up, face red as a tomato.  
Joey arched an eyebrow, but slowly his face cleared and he smiled. "Sure, sis," he said, putting his shoes on the table and folding his arms behind his head. "What do you wanna know?"  
"I don't know...what's he like?" Serenity finally dared to look at her brother. Joey looked at the ceiling for a moment, deep in thought. Then he looked back at her.  
"Yuge's the best friend anyone could ask for. He's the one who won the cash for your operation, y'know. Three million bucks, and when I offered him the card so he could claim it, he told me to keep it. He said." Joey squinted, trying to recall his friend's exact words. "He said, 'No, Joey. You keep it. Use this to pay for Serenity's operation.' When I asked if he was sure, he said, 'I didn't enter this tournament to get rich, Joey.' I'll never forget that." Joey was silent, which gave Serenity time to collect her scattered wits. When Tristan had told her he had helped Joey win the money, she hadn't quite believed him, but she had never dreamed a complete stranger would give up three million dollars to help her regain her sight.  
Joey sighed. "And you were there, just a few weeks ago, when that creepy Marik dude had me possessed. You heard Yuge, right?"  
Serenity thought back. Her heart sped up as she remembered that terrifying day at the Domino Harbor.  
  
***Flashback***  
  
"There's not much time left, Joey! If one of us doesn't win, we'll both be pulled under, and there's no way I'm going to let that happen."  
"What're you sayin', Yuge?" Serenity heard her brother's voice. She knew from what the others had said Yugi had the power to decide who lived and died in the duel, but she couldn't have imagined what he was about to say in her wildest dreams.  
"I'm saying that I've decided to save you." Serenity knew her gasp was audible, but she didn't care. Was he really saying he'd give up his life by his own free will? "There's no point in both of us being dragged down, and if I lose, you're safe."  
"But-" she heard her brother's shocked voice. "I can't let you do this, Yuge."  
"It's my decision," came the soft reply. Serenity could hear tears in the other boy's voice, and yet it sounded as if he were smiling at the same time. "So now."  
"No, Yugi!" Joey's shout was desperate.  
"Take care of my Puzzle." Serenity didn't understand this, but was too riveted on what was happening to ask one of the people near her. Her breath caught in her throat. Oh no...  
"Now it's time! Mystical Ref Panel, direct your attack towards me!"  
  
***End Flashback***  
  
Serenity was so wrapped up in her memories of the episode that she almost failed to notice her brother's eyes on her, waiting for an answer. "Oh...yes." she said softly, not meeting Joey's eyes.  
"Well, there you go. I think the best way to describe Yugi." Joey seemed to be searching for the right words. "I think you could say he'd do anything for anybody, and he'd do it all with a smile on his face." Joey shook himself out of a reverie. "Listen to me- I sound like a greeting card. Did that answer your question, sis?"  
Serenity nodded, lost in thought. She hadn't thought it possible for her opinion of Yugi to rise any higher; yet, obviously, her brother had proven her wrong. Suddenly her mother's voice jerked her back to reality.  
"Joseph! Get your feet off the table this instant! And Serenity, you had better get moving. The bus will be coming soon- you don't want to be late for your first day!" Mrs. Wheeler's voice was kind but insistent.  
"Sorry, Ma," Joey apologized, lowering his feet to the floor with a thud. "C'mon, Serenity. Get dressed so we can head to the bus stop."  
Serenity nodded, her usual cheery smile lighting up her face. "All right, Joey. I'll hurry." Pushing aside her half-eaten breakfast, she darted up the stairs. \I'll think more about Yugi later. Right now, I don't have time for anything so confusing.\  
Serenity changed into the Domino High uniform in record time, running a brush through her long hair and grabbing her books, which had been ready and waiting since the day before. Then, ignoring the persistent nagging at the corners of her mind, she dashed down the stairs and out the door, where Joey was waiting impatiently.  
The bus ride was long and uneventful, as were her first few classes. She knew no one and no one made any effort to speak to her yet. They were all a bit wary of the newcomer. Joey had warned her it might be like this, but that didn't make her any less lonely. As she gathered her lunch and dropped her books in her locked, she heard her brother's voice behind her.  
"Hey Serenity! So, how was your mornin'?"  
"About as good as it could be," she sighed, running a hand through her hair and leaning against the lockers.  
"Well, c'mon," Joey said. His smile held the gentleness only present when dealing with his little sister. "There's a seat at out lunch table with your name on it."  
"Thanks, Joey. I can always count on you to bail me out," Serenity said gratefully, following her older brother. "Who else sits at your table?"  
"Tristan usually, but he's outta town for the next week or so. Téa- you know her?" Joey asked. As Serenity nodded, her mind bringing her a vague image of a girl with brown hair cut just above her shoulders, Joey continued. "Bakura, who you probably don't know, Mai and Duke sometimes, and Yugi, of course."  
Serenity stopped dead. "Yugi?" she choked, trying to keep her voice calm. \I won't know what to say to him! What if I make a fool of myself, or do something stupid- like let on how much I like him? \  
Joey nodded slowly and painstakingly, as though she were a bit off in the head. "Yes, Yugi," he said. "Y'know he's my best friend- why wouldn't he sit with us? Something wrong?"  
"N-no," Serenity stuttered, trying to look as though everything was perfectly fine. \Which it's not! \ her nagging mental voice insisted. "Lead the way, big brother."  
Joey gave her a suspicious look, but when she flashed her "I'm- innocent-why-are-you-looking-at-me" face he sighed, resigned to the fact that his sister was not going to let it slip why she'd been acting so strangely. Trooping out to the playground, Serenity followed, desperately rehearsing what she was going to say.  
At the table Mai was talking loudly to a white-haired boy who she guessed must be Bakura and the girl she recognized as Téa, Duke was listening intently, and- Serenity's heart did a flip-flop- Yugi was sitting with his head in his hands, looking ready to fall asleep.  
"Hey guys! Serenity finally started school here, so she'll be sittin' with us for a while," Joey greeted his friends in one breath. Mai smiled and gave Serenity a thumbs-up, while Bakura gave her a friendly nod and Duke gave a casual wave. Yugi blinked suddenly, as if he'd only just realized she was there, and smiled "hello." Then his head dropped back into his hands.  
"Something wrong, Yuge?" Joey asked, concerned.  
Yugi lifted his head again and smiled in what was meant to be a reassuring way, but it looked rather forced. "I'm just not feeling that well today," he mumbled. Suddenly he let out a loud sneeze, blowing himself backwards off the bench. He flipped over and ended up sitting cross-legged in the grass, dazed.  
"Yugi, you look awful!" Mai exclaimed suddenly, taking a good look at the smaller boy. He was pale and there were shadows beneath his large violet eyes. "Are you sick?"  
"I'm not sure." Yugi said, shrugging listlessly. "I just feel kinda." He sneezed again.  
"Geez, Yugi, what'd you do? Go for a nice walk in the rain or something?" Duke said teasingly, although plainly concerned about his friend.  
Serenity paled. \Oh great, now after helping me find my way home, Yugi has to get sick because he gave me his jacket and walked home in the rain. What a great way to show him I care! \ She bit her lip, willing herself not to cry at the sheer hopelessness of her situation.  
Yugi stumbled to his feet, wobbling slightly. His eyes met Serenity's, and she couldn't tear her gaze away. His eyes were so gentle...sweet...compassionate..."I think I can make it till the end of today," he told his friends.  
"Yugi, you know you're sick and we know you're sick. Just go home for the rest of the day. You aren't going to get any better by pushing yourself too hard," Mai said, giving him a forceful stare. Everyone voiced their agreement, and Yugi sighed.  
"You win. I'll go ask the." he sneezed. ".the nurse if I can go home now. I have to admit, I feel rotten." He began to drag himself across the grassy area.  
As Joey took his seat, Serenity edged over to the left, moving away from the table. "I'll...be right back, I forgot my...um...my calculator," she said, whirling and running to catch up with Yugi. She could feel confused stares on her back but didn't turn around.  
"Yugi!" she called. He turned his head as Serenity came dashing up to him. "Yugi, I wanted to tell you I'm sorry you're sick," Serenity blurted. She could have hit herself. \Wow, that only sounded ridiculously stupid! Nice job, genius. \  
"S'ok," Yugi said wearily, giving her a smile nonetheless. "It's not your fault. Hey, sorry I couldn't stay and hang out with you on your first day. I remember how I felt when I was new." he sneezed yet again. "But I'm sure you'll make plenty of friends."  
"To tell you the truth." Serenity said. She stopped, but then let it out in a rush. "I'm too nervous to talk to anyone! I don't know how to make friends!"  
Yugi gave her another of his sunny smiles. "Hey, don't worry about it. I'm the same way, usually. But I'll be back tomorrow, most likely, and we can hang out then." He flashed her a thumbs-up and then continued his weary walk to the nurse's office. Serenity stood there for a moment, staring after him.  
"We can hang out then." she murmured, staring after him.  
***  
The next day, Serenity was ready for school before Joey was even awake. She was barely able to keep still, with the prospect of seeing Yugi so near. She hadn't completely lost her wits, though, and still had the sense to think to herself- \This is insane, that I lo- er, like someone this much. \ She was blushing furiously despite the fact she was alone- she couldn't even think the fatal word to herself. \I'm losing it.\  
"Serenity? What are you doing up?" Joey yawned, coming down the stairs to see his younger sister sitting at the kitchen table, red as a beet and drumming her fingers on the table top as she held a whispered conversation with herself. "And-" he raised his eyebrows at the extreme oddity of the situation. "What in the world 're you doin'?"  
Serenity snapped her olive-green eyes to her brother's skeptical face. "Um." she stammered, knowing how peculiar she must look at the moment. "I was...singing?"  
Joey tried to choke back his laughter, but it escaped anyway as a very undignified snort. "Sure, sis. I hope you'll tell me what's really goin' on one 'a these days." He shook his head, opening the refrigerator and taking the milk off its shelf. "What d'you want for breakfast?"  
"I ate already," Serenity said quickly, gesturing to the empty bowl and spoon on the counter. "Hurry, Joey. We don't want to be late for school."  
"Serenity, it's six forty-five!" Joey protested. "School doesn't start for another hour! And since when have you liked school so much?"  
"I just don't want to get in trouble," Serenity said, gesturing for her brother to eat quickly. "Let's go, hurry it up, come on!" Joey barely had time to bolt down a bowl of cereal and grab his books before Serenity herded him out of the door, her mind focused on one thing: \maybe today's when I tell Yugi how I feel. Or, do I just keep my crush a secret? But I really really lo- I mean, like him.\  
When the two arrived at school, Serenity's eyes widened as she saw her homeroom- it was draped in pink-and-red crepe paper. Hearts hung from the light fixtures and decorated the walls, and a large banner stretched across the blackboard proclaimed: "Happy Valentine's Day!"  
Serenity's spirits plummeted. \Valentine's Day...of course. \ She plunked down at her lonely desk in the corner, watching listlessly as girls squealed with excitement, exchanging cards with friends and giggling over assorted boys in their classroom. \I'm sure Yugi's already got a girlfriend...I mean, a guy like Yugi.\ she sighed, putting her head down on her desk. \What a perfect day to have all my hopes dashed in the dirt. \  
She did her best to pay attention as the day wore on, but it was hard, with the excited whispers of girls and the occasional returned smile from the admired male in question, not to drift off on a tumultuous sea of daydreams.  
The bell chimed, startling Serenity out of her gloomy thoughts. "Lunchtime." she murmured, picking herself up and dragging her feet all the way to her locker, then out to the outdoor cafeteria.  
She looked around, feeling hopelessness sneak up on her again. \There's nowhere to sit.\ As she scanned the area for a familiar face, she saw Duke surrounded by a giggling group of girls and a furiously blushing Joey sitting across from none other than Mai. \Wonderful...alone on Valentine's Day, of all days. \ Then she heard a voice that lifted her spirits considerably.  
"Serenity!" She snapped her gaze to a table at the far end of the cafeteria area. She scanned the sea of faces, her eyes halting when she saw a pair of violet eyes and a friendly smile. "C'mon over!"  
Trying to keep a giddy smile from taking over her face, she made her way across the grassy area and stopped in front of a table at which Téa, Bakura, and Yugi sat.  
"Sit with us," Téa suggested brightly, motioning for her to take the seat next to Bakura.  
"How come you're here?" Serenity said, addressing Yugi, eyes cast downward.  
"I completely healed," Yugi grinned. "I'm a fast recoverer, if that's even a word."  
" No, I meant- I mean- don't you have a- I mean, what I mean is-" Serenity blurted, wanting to smack herself yet again.  
"A 'significant other'? No," Yugi said, shaking his head with a smile. Despite the expression, he looked a little wistful. "We just come today for the candy." He winked and Serenity could feel her heart melt. She let out a little sigh, then blanched as she heard it. \Did I just sigh like a lovesick teenager? No. Oh, no. I don't care how sweet and...and wonderful...he is, I did NOT just do that. \  
"Eat fast," Bakura suggested. "Lunch is shortened today, since we get out early for the holiday." Serenity complied, listening to the three friends' chatter and occasionally chiming in with a comment of her own.  
When the bell rang, Bakura and Téa both stood and, after saying a quick goodbye, made a run for their next class. Serenity was about to do the same when she felt Yugi tap her shoulder.  
"Happy Valentine's day, Serenity," he said, offering her something. She took it. It was a beautiful rose, the petals crimson as a cardinal against newly fallen snow. She stared at the blossom, struck dumb. "It's...it's beautiful." she croaked, not knowing what else to say. She closed her eyes and smelled the rose, inhaling the sweet scent of the flower. "Oh, it's so sweet!"  
"I'm glad you like it," Yugi said, giving her a shy smile. "From a friend to a friend. I'll see you around, okay?"  
"Okay," Serenity repeated, not knowing what else to say. "Thank you." She smiled back. "Thank you so much."  
"Don't mention it. Talk to you later!" And with a wave, Yugi ran off, leaving a completely speechless Serenity behind him.  
\He gave me a flower.\ she drifted into her classroom, staring at the rose. \It's so pretty.\  
"OOOO!"  
Serenity started at hearing loud squeals.  
"A rose! Who gave you that? It's so pretty!"  
Two of the girls from her class were looking excitedly at the rose Serenity held. "Is he your boyfriend? Do you like him? Do I know him?"  
One of the girls elbowed the other. "We probably should introduce ourselves. I'm Celeste, and this is Dana. You're Serenity, right?"  
Serenity nodded.  
"So, what's the scoop on the rose?" Dana asked, nudging Serenity impatiently.  
"A...a friend of mine gave it to me," she said, blushing brightly. "But I."  
"Ooo!" Celeste's eyes widened in comprehension. "You like him as more than a friend?"  
Too embarrassed to speak, Serenity nodded.  
Dana grinned. "Tell me all about it! We've got Chemistry together next!" she said, linking her arm with Serenity's. "Don't worry, I promise I won't tell!"  
Serenity smiled at her new friend. "Okay." \Thank you, Yugi, \ she beamed a mental message to him. \You've helped me belong.\  
***  
A dark figure watched, from the dark recesses of his ally's host's mind. He had witnessed the whole scene. \The Pharaoh's hikari obviously cares for this girl...she could be useful...very useful indeed.\ With a quiet, sinister laugh, he vanished...  
  
***  
  
Um...not sure if that counts as a cliffhanger or not. *Shrugs* Anyways, please review! I know this one was not very action-y, but that's coming! I promise!  
Adios, mis amigos! ^_^ 


	3. Gate Within the Roses

Hi there everyone! Thanks so much for your reviews- I'm glad to know some others out there like what I've been writing! ^_^ Seriously, you guys made my day.  
  
So:  
  
Anime-crazed33: I like this pairing too. That's why I chose it to try out writing a romance fiction. And thankies SO much for adding me to your Favorites List!  
  
A Watcher: Wow, I can write fluff? Never knew that before...  
  
Rowan and Sakura: Thanks for both of your reviews. In case you haven't noticed, I love Yugi and think he's such a sweet character. ^_^  
  
Hey: Cool quote! Mind if I use it at some point in the story? And gracias for both of the heart-warming reviews.  
  
Viola: *blinks* *backs away slowly* Ooo-kay then... I'm glad I can write well enough to make someone maniacal... just remember, if you kill me, no one finds out how the story ends.  
  
"Mysterious E-mail Person": I'm not sure which person you are, but thanks a zillion for the e-mail. When someone enjoys it enough to take the time to send me a nice e-mail, it makes me feel special. ^_^  
  
That's about it, so. *gives fresh-baked brownies to all reviewers*  
  
Disclaimer: That wonderful thing known as Yu-Gi-Oh does not belong to me, nor does any of the characters.  
  
You know the drill: \Lalala\: thinking  
  
On with the story, then:  
  
"I'm With You"  
  
Chapter Three: Gate Within the Roses  
  
Serenity opened her locker. She let out a quiet squeal of glee. On her books rested a perfect blue rose, thorns cut from the stem and petals spread just like rose's petals should be. She lifted it to her nose. "Mmm..." she murmured, the sweet scent wafting through the air. She knew she shouldn't be surprised. After all, since Valentine's Day, Yugi had given her a rose every day for an entire week.  
\I have got to be the luckiest girl at Domino High...\ Serenity thought, gazing into the darkness of her locker. \Even if these are all just from a friend...\ she swallowed the sudden lump in her throat. It twisted her heart to know that no matter how much she lo- liked Yugi, he still apparently had no clue of her feelings or returned them if he did.  
"Aww! Another one?" came Dana's voice from behind Serenity. Serenity and the bubbly redhead had really hit it off, and they had become close friends.  
Serenity nodded, her face scarlet. She showed the rose to Dana, who gasped. "A blue one this time? I've never seen one of those in my life!"  
"Yeah... isn't it pretty?" Serenity said, stroking a finger along the silky petals. "I wish I knew how to tell him how I felt. I just don't think anyone like him could ever like me..." She let out another sigh. \He's so wonderful... kind... sweet...\ she shook herself out of her thoughts as the bell rang.  
"C'mon, we've got Chemistry now!" Dana urged, grabbing Serenity's arm and dragging her along. "Good chance to zone out and daydream. So, how d'you think you did on that quiz?"  
"Quiz?" Serenity repeated, frowning in concentration. "I don't... oh yeah, we did have a quiz, didn't we?"  
Dana laughed. "Um, heck yeah! I thought I did okay, but I think..." Dana's chatter gave Serenity the opportunity to look one more time at the rose. No matter how much she tried, she couldn't stop herself from thinking of the violet-eyed sophomore. She was head over heels, and there was nothing she could do about it. Serenity tucked the blue rose behind her ear as she took a seat in the back of the classroom.  
"All right, class! I'll hand back your quizzes now. Overall..." her Chemistry teacher droned on as Serenity slipped into the world of daydreams. Over and over, she kept remembering when Yugi had offered her his hand on that rainy night, and when she had first realized she had fallen for him.  
"Serenity? Miss Wheeler!"  
A sharp jab in the ribs made her look up with a start. Dana had awakened her to the fact that her teacher was now addressing her in an increasingly frustrated voice.  
"Would you please see me after class, Miss Wheeler? I have something I'd like to discuss with you."  
Serenity colored as the class broke into a chorus of low "oooo" sounds. "Serenity's in trouble, Serenity's in trouble..."  
"That will do!" The class quieted, as Serenity put her face in her hands. "Now, if you will turn to your periodic table of elements..."  
The rest of the class passed by uneventfully. When the final bell rang, Serenity collected her books and went up to the teacher's desk, hands folded nervously in front of her. "You wanted to see me, ma'am?"  
"Serenity, I understand you have studied the periodic table before?"  
This, besides confusing her, only made her more nervous. "Yes, ma'am," she responded, keeping her eyes focused on the pencils in the china mug on her teacher's desk.  
"The first half of your quiz is excellent. You recognized every one of the symbols. The second half, however..." her teacher took a paper out of her handbag and offered it to Serenity.  
Serenity took the paper. Her eyes scanned the questions. "Cobalt, Gold, Copper, Manganese, Silicon, Fluorine, Yugi..." She choked on her words as she did a double take. \Please don't tell me I...\  
But she had. On her twenty-question quiz, she had inadvertently answered the last seven questions with the word "Yugi" written in fancy cursive. And... she turned even redder as she scanned the page. She had dotted the "i's" with little hearts.  
\Oh dear. Oh dear. I am in such big trouble. \ Serenity's head buzzed as she looked at the paper, willing the words to change to what she knew were the right answers. \Please, let them change. Please. \ The scrawled words seemed to laugh at her as she looked helplessly at her teacher. "I..."  
"Is there something you'd like to tell me?" Her teacher folded her hands and waited.  
"N-no, ma'am. I don't know... what I was..." Serenity trailed off.  
Her teacher stopped her stammered excuse, eyes kind. "Serenity, being as you're new here, I think we can arrange a retake of this quiz, don't you?"  
Serenity nearly melted in relief. "Oh, thank you so much, ma'am! I promise I won't do anything like this again. Thank you!"  
Her teacher once again interrupted with a raised eyebrow. "However, I am going to send a note home to your mother."  
Serenity's heart plummeted. \Oh no! Mom will want to know who 'Yugi' is and my secret will be out! She might even make me transfer back! I've ruined everything for myself! \ "I- I understand, ma'am," she made herself say, blinking furiously to keep from bursting into tears. "Thank you. I'll make up the quiz tomorrow." Whirling, she raced from the classroom, heart pounding in her ears and eyes stinging. \What a perfect end to my day...\  
Serenity sat through her last two classes in a numb, foggy daze. \Not only did I give myself away, I probably got Yugi in trouble also! Way to go, genius...\ As the bell rang for the end of school, she trudged from her classroom and to her locker. She busied herself with her Chemistry book as the flow of students slowly trickled away. Finally she was alone in the Domino High basement. Slamming her locker with a resounding clang, she slid to the floor and buried her face in her hands, long hair falling forward to obscure her even further. \At least I'm alone now...\  
An echoing pair of footsteps proved her wrong. She thought a whole stream of swear words as she attempted to smooth her hair back and get to her feet.  
She had no such luck. "Serenity? What's wrong?" It was none other than Yugi, eyes plainly concerned as he ran over to her.  
Serenity couldn't hold back a sniffle. \Great... now along with everything else, Yugi probably thinks I'm a big baby. \ "I just had a rotten day," she lied. "I blew a quiz..." \Well, that's true, \ she defended herself mentally. "Nothing seems to be going right for me."  
Yugi sat down next to her, his back against the lockers. "Serenity, it's okay. Everyone has a bad day once in a while, and it's nothing to freak out about. I'll bet tomorrow everything will seem a whole lot better."  
Serenity didn't quite believe that, but she couldn't help but feel better at his kind words. "Thanks, Yugi," she said, sniffling and wiping at her jade-green eyes. "I hope so."  
Yugi watched her for a moment, then seemed to come to a decision. "Serenity? If you want to come over for a little bit, there's something I'd like to show you."  
Serenity looked at him with disbelieving eyes. She'd daydreamed about this all the time, but never expected it to actually happen. "S-sure," she stammered, getting to her feet and giving him a watery smile. "Lead the way!"  
***  
"Perfect..." breathed a sinister voice, watching from behind borrowed eyes as Serenity left, hand-in-hand with Yugi. "The girl and the Pharaoh's brat, together. This is the perfect opportunity to put my plan into play." A flash of gold, and his ally's counterpart was moving stealthily, brown eyes blank but for a glint of insanity that was not his own. "Soon... very soon..."  
***  
"This way, Serenity," Yugi motioned, crawling nimbly under a tangle of branches. "We're almost there, I promise."  
"We'd better be," Serenity giggled, pulling leaves out of her hair. "Or I never trust anything you say again!"  
"Ouch, that's cold," Yugi groaned in mock pain. "C'mon, Serenity, we're friends, right? Just trust me!"  
Serenity, instead of making the expected funny retort, let out a dreamy sigh. "Yeah..." she murmured, clearly lost in her own little world.  
Yugi pulled himself to his feet and offered a hand to Serenity. She stood up, and Yugi began to take off in a different direction.  
"Yugi!" Serenity groaned, running to catch up. "I thought we were 'almost there!' Where's this-"  
Yugi suddenly stopped, and Serenity collided with him. Yugi smacked into a tree, flung forward by Serenity's momentum, and both of them tumbled to the ground.  
"Omigosh! I'm sorry, Yugi!" Serenity gasped, sitting up. She had bits of moss in her hair, making her look as though a routine highlight at the hair salon had gone horribly wrong.  
Yugi groaned and sat up, rubbing his nose. "It's okay," he assured her, the dirt on his face making him look like he was wearing a bizarre form of war paint. "Not a problem." He winked at her and got to his feet, only to promptly fall over sideways. "I guess I hit the tree harder than I thought..." he mumbled. Suddenly he burst into laughter.  
"Um... Yugi?" Serenity asked uncertainly. "You okay?"  
"Your... hair..." Yugi gasped out, overcome by giggles.  
Serenity ran her fingers through her long, chestnut hair. She pulled out a clump... moss?  
"Well, I may have green hair, but at least I'm not wearing war paint, Yugi!" she said, mock indignant.  
Yugi collected himself and climbed to his feet. "I see it!" he said suddenly, face lighting up. "C'mon, Serenity."  
He led her over to a large stone wall. It looked hundreds of years old, and was covered in clinging vines of ivy.  
"This is what you wanted to show me?" Serenity said uncertainly. "It's... very nice, I suppose..."  
Yugi shook his head, grinning mischievously. "Not that! Come this way." He crept softly around the corner and motioned for her to lift up the gauzy veil of ivy.  
Serenity gasped. There was a hole in the wall large enough to crawl through. She immediately did so, and crawled straight into...  
It had to be paradise, or something close to it. Roses bloomed in every corner of the stone enclosure. Small, creamy roses crept up the walls; crimson and pink blossomed in a far corner; blue and white twined around a mossy, ancient stone bench; bright gold roses grew in what was once probably a fountain.  
"Yugi, this is..." Serenity couldn't finish. Her eyes felt as though they were popping out of her head. "How did... where..."  
Yugi grinned, looking embarrassed. "Close your eyes and just breathe for a minute. Try it, really."  
Serenity immediately complied; at the moment, she felt as if she would have cheerfully dropped out of school and moved to Turkmenistan, had Yugi asked it in that gentle, friendly voice of his. The sweet smell of roses, carried on a soft breeze, was heavenly. She inhaled deeply, feeling calm wash over her.  
"Isn't it nice?" Yugi's voice was soft, almost reverent. "I always like to come here after a bad day. It makes me feel a whole lot better. That's why I wanted to show it to you." He smiled at her. "What do you think?"  
For a moment, she couldn't speak. Finally, she managed, "Thank you."  
For a few minutes, they sat in comfortable silence. Finally, Serenity asked, "So, this is where you get all the roses?"  
"Yup," Yugi grinned.  
"Whose is this place?"  
Yugi blushed and looked away. "No one's, really. I found it a few years back, and I thought why not try and bring the roses back to life."  
"You grew all these yourself?" Serenity gasped, tearing her gaze away from the roses to look at Yugi. "That's incredible!"  
"I wanted to..." Yugi turned an even deeper shade of red. "You'll probably think this is silly, but I wanted to pretend that I had a Secret Garden. You know, like in that book? That was one of my favorites, and when I found this place..." he shrugged and looked down self-consciously.  
"I don't think that's silly! When I was little, I'd make Joey play that my rocking horse was Black Beauty." Serenity suddenly stopped, then giggled nervously. "Wow, I never told anyone that before."  
"Same here," Yugi said, giving her a shy smile. "You're the first person I ever showed this garden to."  
Serenity knew she was blushing. Abruptly, she got to her feet. \It's a miracle I'm not permanently red, what with all the blushing I've been doing. \ Idly she picked up a fallen rose and began to pluck the petals. \He loves me... he loves me not... he loves me... he loves me not...\  
"Serenity."  
She was startled at his sudden change in tone. He sounded frightened, and at the same time, insistent.  
"Get behind me. Something's wrong. I have this feeling..."  
Serenity hurried to do as asked, fighting back a rush of panic. The wind was suddenly cold, and clouds covered the afternoon sun.  
"Who's there? Show yourself!" Yugi shouted, chin up and eyes flashing dangerously.  
Serenity looked around her nervously, still holding the rose. Suddenly she felt an urge to walk to the other end of the garden... it made so much sense... just go... just walk...  
"I don't know, Serenity," Yugi murmured. "Maybe I'm just..." he trailed off. "Serenity! What are you..."  
She was there... and suddenly, the ground beneath her was gone. A pit of blackness opened in the ground beneath her, and violet electricity sparked around the hole. "Yugi! Help!" she cried out, as she sank into the portal. It was the funniest thing... as she looked up, she half-fancied she could see her body, still frozen in place. And quite suddenly, she was gone and knew nothing more.  
"Serenity!" Yugi cried out. The portal was closing... he had to get there in time! Running for all he was worth, he dived forward, sliding as if he was stealing home plate, and disappeared into the void just seconds before it closed completely.  
The garden was silent again, its only occupants the two bodies crumpled among the roses. A soft wind blew by, the stillness broken only by the rose Serenity had dropped floating gently to the ground, borne by the breeze. The final petal gently fell from the bud, dropping softly onto the thick cushion of grass.  
**He loves me...**  
  
***  
  
Was this one a cliffhanger? I'm just so confused... ^_^  
  
So, please all review and tell me how it went. Your reviews make my day, especially as I'm suffering through Chemistry just like poor Serenity here. *cringes, remembering undone homework*  
  
I'll try my best to get the next one done fast, assuming people still want to read this...  
  
*crickets*  
  
^_^ So, until next time, my fellow fan fiction-ers, see you later! 


	4. Explanations

Hola, mis amigos y amigas! Que pasa?  
  
I believe thanks are in order to all that reviewed again:  
  
Anime-crazed33: *blushes* Thanks so much! Your review is what really inspired me to continue this one... just 'cause it was sooo nice.  
  
DJ Rodriguez: Here's an update for you! *smiles* Glad to have you aboard and reading my story, DJ. Thanks for reviewing all three chapters!  
  
A Watcher: Glad to see those pesky crickets are gone. I'm glad you liked the roses- they're one of my personal favorite aspects of this story. I never expected them to get so important, but... *shrugs*  
  
Rowan and Sakura: LOL. I somehow doubt that'll happen, but if it does, you definitely have my sympathies. Actually, I just blew a Chem quiz, but it's NOT because I wrote in Yugi's name for the rest of the answers. And it's not like I failed! Sheesh! C- isn't that bad, is it?  
  
And now for the other stuff:  
  
Disclaimer: Last time I neglected to mention I don't own Black Beauty or the Secret Garden, and this time all I need say is I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh.  
  
\Roses\: thoughts /Roses/: Yugi to Yami //Roses//: Yami to Yugi  
  
On with the story!  
  
"I'm With You"  
  
Chapter Four: Explanations  
  
"Serenity! Serenity, wake up!"  
Serenity stirred, her olive-green eyes opening halfway. Her vision was blurred, but there was no mistaking that voice. "Yugi? Yugi, where are we?" It seemed unnaturally dark for the middle of the day...  
"I'm not positive, but I think I have a fairly good idea." Yugi's usually-cheerful voice was grim and a bit frightened. "Are you okay?"  
"I think so..." Serenity said, shaking her head in a vain attempt to clear it. It did no good for her thoughts, but her vision did slide back into focus. Her eyes first landed on Yugi's worried face, and slid to the landscape behind him.  
Serenity did a double take. The roses, the cloudless sky, the stone wall were all gone. They were surrounded by a crackling, purple-and-black cloudlike zone that extended as far as Serenity could see. Twisting to look behind her, Serenity fought down a growing sense of panic as she saw to her chagrin it surrounded them on all sides. Even the ground, hard and cold as it was, was obscured because of the dark, swirling mists.  
Serenity turned back to Yugi. "Yugi, what's going on? What in the world is happening?" \Am I going blind again?\ she added to herself, too afraid to voice her fears out loud.  
Yugi opened his mouth, but what he had been about to say was lost to a sudden, howling rush of wind. The cold air made a hollow whistling sound, as if they were in an abandoned wind tunnel. A bright flash of cold light illuminated the bleak landscape. Serenity let out a frightened squeak and scooted backward into Yugi, who put a protective arm around her shoulders. Icy mist rushed in, swirling above them, and began to take shape. Serenity watched, speechless, as the mist formed itself into words. She began to read, her mouth forming the words soundlessly.  
  
"Welcome, Pharaoh, light, and girl,  
By now you'll know my name.  
You dwell within the Shadow World  
Prepare to play my game.  
  
"Five challenges await you  
Five solutions do you lack  
Five dangers must you come through  
Should you wish to make it back.  
  
"Each 'mountain' that you scale  
Your chances brighten by a spark  
But should one game you fail  
You'll spend forever in the dark.  
  
"Just one more warning given  
Though but five games exist  
There will be one last decision  
The tests will number six.  
  
"Your lives hold little value  
As you have no chance to win  
I have no more to tell you  
So let the game begin..."  
  
The words hovered for several moments, winking like a frozen mist in the dark air, and then dissipated, vanishing into the black depths of the landscape.  
Serenity's eyes were wide. \What on earth is going on? \  
"Serenity..." She jumped. Yugi's voice had startled her. He was staring hard at the spot where the words had been. "Why'd you go to the other side of the garden? I mean-" he cocked his head, seeming to listen to someone else Serenity could neither see nor hear. "What made you want to?" His voice didn't sound accusing or rebuking; rather, it sounded as though he was thinking hard and had come to a decision he didn't particularly like.  
"Well..." Serenity scrunched up her face. "It was like..." she paused, searching for the right words. "Like someone else was controlling me, telling me what I had to do. But that's ridiculous, right?" she asked hurriedly, almost pleadingly.  
Instead of answering, Yugi's face took on as close to a murderous glare as Serenity supposed it could go. "How dare he..." he murmured under his breath, voice trembling in rage. "How dare he bring you into this..." He raised furious violet eyes to the endless black sky. "Marik, you coward!" he shouted furiously, his voice cracking slightly. "What kind of twisted mind do you have, huh?"  
Serenity watched, eyes even wider than before. "Um, Yugi? I'm sorry, but I..." she trailed off. \I really, really don't get it... \  
Yugi seemed to deflate. "I'm sorry. I suppose I owe you an explanation."  
"That'd be helpful," Serenity quipped, shaking her hair out of her face.  
"What would you like to know first?"  
"Well..." she frowned in thought. "How about that poem thing? I mean, I assume I'm the girl, but who's the Pharaoh and who's the light?" \Light... the light has to be Yugi... \ that little voice in her head whispered. Serenity mentally quashed it. \We have more important things to do than struggle with my inability to tell him how I feel, so shut it! \  
Yugi sighed. "You see... no, that's not right. I'm a..." he let out a small laugh. "This is going to be harder than I thought." Suddenly his violet eyes got a faraway look in them, and he tilted his head as if hearing the mysterious voice again. "Okay..." he murmured. "Serenity, how much do you know about the Millennium items?"  
She was thrown off balance by the question. "Um..." she trailed off. "I know that you have one of them, and that there's six- no, seven, right?" Yugi nodded encouragingly, and Serenity continued, heartened. "And if you get all of them you can rule the world or something, right?"  
"Good." Yugi smiled and nodded, making Serenity want to melt into a little puddle. "Okay, so you do know something about them. Joey told you?" At her nod, he spoke again. "Each item has a different power. Mine is the Millennium Puzzle- it houses an ancient spirit inside." Yugi continued in a rush. "My spirit's name is Yami, and he was once the Pharaoh. That's where the 'Pharaoh' came from in the poem."  
Serenity was gaping. "An ancient spirit?" she squeaked.  
Yugi smiled sadly. "Yes. I know it's hard to believe, but we're linked together. We can speak to each other through a mind link, and- oh, here, d'you want to meet him? He can probably explain better that I can."  
Serenity nodded numbly. A bright flash of gold made her shield her eyes. When she looked again, she could feel her jaw drop. Yugi looked... different. Older. His eyes weren't as innocent, nor was his face, and he seemed much more sure of himself. If he hadn't been sitting, he would have been taller than she was.  
"Serenity?" he asked in a deep voice. When she nodded again, dumbfounded, he continued. "Yugi's told me about you. I am Yami, the Pharaoh. I'm pleased to meet you."  
Serenity, inexplicably, felt a smile come to her face. This was absolutely insane... yet, she somehow believed in it completely. "Pleasure's mine," she said politely. "But... how did you get here? If you're from ancient Egypt..."  
"I live within the Puzzle. Yugi solved it, and we're bonded. I am his darkness; he is my light. That's where the 'light' came from."  
Serenity, to her embarrassment, was blushing again. "He does seem like he would be the light..." she said softly.  
Yami nodded. "Precisely. Yugi is a pure soul, otherwise known as a 'hikari.' It literally means light. I, therefore, am by default the darkness, and it is my job to protect him."  
"Okay, so, I know who you are- now, where are we?" Serenity asked.  
"You're taking this very calmly," was Yami's answer. "But, in answer to your question, this is the Shadow Realm. It's a twisted place of magical energies reached only with a Millennium Item. The portal you entered extracted your soul from your body; this is a place of souls only."  
Serenity felt her head beginning to spin. "And... why are we here? Who brought us? Did you?"  
Yami looked slightly offended. "I did not. Marik is the one who brought you here. I take it you know Marik?"  
\Marik... it sounds so familiar- oh! \ Serenity suddenly realized with a flash where she had heard the name. "That's the guy who used magic to possess my brother! He's the one who almost killed Yugi!"  
Yami's voice was definitely defensive now. "Indeed," he said shortly. "His Millennium Rod is what possessed you into entering the portal to the Shadow Realm. He knew Yugi would follow you down. What he wants is my powers. If he were to take my magic, he could conceivably take over the entire world with the spells he unlocks. This is obviously his latest plan to destroy me and claim the Puzzle." Yami did not look away; he stared straight at her with hard violet eyes. "Is that the end of your questions?"  
"I..." Before she could finish, the gold glow enveloped the figure and she was looking into the gentle eyes of Yugi again.  
"I'm sorry about that." Yugi's voice was regretful. "Yami takes his job as protector very seriously. He hates it that I got into so much trouble- plus, I think he's angry that Marik is trying again."  
"Hold up." Serenity's head was whirling with the new information. "So, we're in a magical place, brought here by an insane maniac so he can try to win the Puzzle from you in this so-called 'game' and use it to take over the world?"  
Yugi nodded. "I think that about covers it." His voice took on a bitter tone. "Marik is such a coward. He refuses to fight me face-to-face, instead dragging my friends into this. All I manage to do is get my friends into trouble..."  
"Yugi, that's not true..." Serenity protested.  
"Yes, it is. Thanks, though." His smile was sad. "The poem said there'll be five challenges. Let's hope none of them are too difficult."  
"Yugi..." Serenity suddenly realized she was shivering. It hadn't felt cold before, but now she felt as if icy tendrils of... something... were beginning to coil around her.  
Yugi's eyes widened. "Hold on, Serenity. One second." He closed his eyes. /Yami, is that the Shadow Realm affecting her?/  
//I think so. It's happening very quickly, if it is.//  
/Well, why don't I feel anything this time?/  
//Last time, we were concentrating on staying separated from one another. Now, though, I can weave a spell around whoever is wearing the Puzzle.//  
/Can you cast it on Serenity too?/  
Yami was silent for a moment. //I don't think so, Yugi. My magic can only protect the one wearing the Puzzle and myself. I'm sorry.//  
/Well.../ Yugi considered for a moment. /If I gave the Puzzle to her, could you cast the spell over Serenity instead?/  
//I could, but... that would leave you defenseless.//  
/I don't care! Serenity should never have been dragged into this. I can't let the Shadow Realm hurt her when this isn't even her fight to begin with!/ He shuddered. /I know what it feels like, when it begins to break your soul.../  
//Yugi-//  
"Serenity, you wear the Millennium Puzzle, all right?" Yugi blurted, before Yami could finish whatever he had been about to say.  
Serenity blinked. "That was... sudden. Why?"  
"Because... if Marik tries anything, you should be wearing the Puzzle. I know more about magic and can protect myself better- so you should have Yami to protect you."  
"But Yugi," she protested. "You need to wear it, don't you? I mean, this Shadow Realm place seems like it could really hurt you."  
//She's sharp.//  
/Quiet, Yami!/ "I've... been here before, so I can... um... protect myself from the Shadow Realm energies."  
//Yugi, that's not true and you know it. If anything, having been here before makes you more vulnerable to the Shadow Realm. You've already been through the pain of being lost here once, so you're weakened to its energies.//  
/I promise, Yami, I'll be fine./ Yugi lifted the Puzzle from around his neck. "Here." He held it out to her.  
Serenity looked at the gleaming Puzzle nervously. "Are you sure?"  
"Don't worry, Serenity." Yugi smiled at her. "I'll be fine. Just take it, okay?"  
Serenity cautiously picked up the silvery chain and slid the weight of the Puzzle around her neck. For a moment, nothing happened; then, all of the sudden, she got a feeling as if she had just slipped into a hot bath. Warmth washed through her and she let out a sigh as the coldness in her mind vanished.  
"Ready?" Yugi's voice sounded shaky.  
"Okay..." Serenity said. She clambered to her feet as Yugi did the same. "So we have to win five games, right?"  
"Right." Yugi flashed her a thumbs-up and a grin. "And with the three of us, there's no way we can lose!"  
Suddenly a rumble shook the dark ground. Serenity looked around her as Yugi's face changed from a smile to a determined look. "Here it comes..." he murmured as another lurch shook the Shadow Realm. "The first Shadow Game..."  
***  
  
o.O  
  
Okay, was that as boring as I thought? I sure hope not...  
  
I absolutely PROMISE the next chapter will be more interesting. It's gotta be, what with the first game and all...  
  
So please review! Your support is what keeps me writing!  
  
Thankies! ^_^ 


	5. The First Game

Zzzz...  
  
Huh? *starts awake* An compound is two or more elements that can only be separated by chemical means! *falls asleep again*  
  
*wakes up* Um... sorry 'bout that... =^_^= Chemistry is evil... *shivers*  
  
Thanks to the following people:  
  
A Watcher: I love it when Yami's protective of Yugi. Have you got an issue of Shonen Jump or something?  
  
Sakura30: Oh, I know! I'm such a sucker for romance and sweet fluffy stuff... thanks for your touching review. Here's more for ya!  
  
DJ Rodriguez: No problemo! Anyone who reviews deserves a place of honor in my Author's notes. ^_^ Thankies for your support! It means a lot to me.  
  
Anime-crazed33: *blushes like Serenity* Th-thank you so so much! I made a work of art? Wow... And I'll try to add some angst later on, just for you!  
  
And now for the disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh. I do, however, own the cards, the CD, and some DVD's, if those count for anything...  
  
\blah blah blah\: thoughts  
  
//blah blah blah//: Yami speaking  
  
"I'm With You"  
  
Chapter Five: The First Game  
  
Serenity cringed, scrunching her eyes until they were halfway open. She didn't want to look, but at the same time, she didn't want to miss what was coming next. Suddenly her stomach dropped as the ground beneath them seemed to vanish completely. She bit back a terrified scream as she and Yugi tumbled through the air, nothing but blackness beneath them. \We're going to die, we're going to die...\  
  
Quite suddenly, it all stopped. Serenity cautiously opened an eye and looked around her. They were in a long, dim corridor, which appeared absolutely normal. The only giveaway was the dark mist hanging in the air.  
  
Yugi was looking around, confused. "I don't know what's supposed to happen... I've never played in a Shadow Game before." He looked utterly bewildered as he stared up and down the hall, as if waiting for something more to occur and point them in the right direction.  
  
//Serenity?//  
  
Serenity let out a yelp and stared wildly around her. "Who said that?" she demanded, unconsciously moving closer to Yugi in her fright. \Am I hearing things? \  
  
//No.//  
  
"Now it's talking to me!" Serenity squeaked frightenedly, knowing she sounded silly but unable to help it. Yugi looked at her, confusion glimmering in the depths of his violet eyes.  
  
//Excuse me...// Whatever it was sounded offended. //I am not an 'it', thank you very much. Don't you remember me?// Serenity listened, comprehension dawning on her. That voice sounded vaguely familiar...  
  
"It's Yami!" Serenity gasped aloud. There was no mistaking that confident, self-assured tone. \But... what's he doing in my head? \  
  
There was an exasperated sigh. Then Yami spoke more gently. //You are wearing my Puzzle, correct?//  
  
Serenity nodded. Then, as only silence filled the connection, she remembered he couldn't see her from wherever he was. "Um... yes?" she tried, not sure how to speak to the ancient voice that had mysteriously implanted itself in her brain.  
  
"Serenity?" Yugi asked worriedly. She was staring into nowhere, and every few moments she would make a comment to herself. "Are you... are you okay?"  
  
//You don't need to speak aloud. I can hear your voice if you think your words to me. Besides, I think you're frightening my hikari.//  
  
"O-" Serenity caught herself. Feeling rather proud that she had remembered, she thought, \Okay, Yami. What is it? \  
  
//Please tell Yugi to walk down the corridor. He may not know how to play Shadow Games, but I do. The game will come to you. If you have need of me, I'll be right here. The sooner you get out of there, the better...// This last thought sounded as if it had slipped out inadvertently.  
  
\Why? Is something wrong? \  
  
There was a brief silence. Then, Yami spoke again. //Everything will be all right, Serenity. Nothing's wrong yet.//  
  
\Will we be safe? Staying here, I mean? \  
  
//You are perfectly safe as long as we're with you.// She felt the connection abruptly stop, as if Yami had turned his back to her. \Yami? \ she tried. She got no response, and finally gave up.  
  
"Serenity?" There was definitely a note of panic in Yugi's voice now. "Please say something, Serenity."  
  
Serenity blinked once and looked at Yugi. "What's the matter?"  
  
Yugi let out a sigh of profound relief. He smiled at her. "You were totally zoned out. I couldn't get you to respond at all. What's up? You acted like someone was talking to you..." he broke off, understanding coming over his face. "You can hear Yami now?"  
  
Serenity nodded, a little surprised he had guessed so quickly. "He said to tell you to walk down the corridor, and that the Game would come to you."  
  
"Well, he would know!" Yugi shrugged, giving her a smile so bright she wondered it didn't burn the Shadow Realm clear away. "Ready?"  
  
"Ready," she replied, giving Yugi a shy smile of her own. They began to walk cautiously down the hallway, footsteps echoing eternally in the darkness beyond.  
  
***  
  
"Yugi? Serenity?"  
  
Joey rubbed a hand across his eyes frustratedly. "Where in the world are those two? Neither of 'em made it home today!" He jogged through the park, ignoring the growing stitch in his side. "Sis? Yugi? Where are you?" His voice grew increasingly more frantic. Finally he reached the end of the path.  
  
"Guys? You in there?" Joey looked warily at the thicket. \I wouldn't think anyone could get in through that tangled mess...\  
  
"Joey!"  
  
Tristan's voice floated across the air, echoed by Téa's. "Any sign of them?"  
  
"Nothing," Joey said angrily as his two friends came to a stop beside him, staring into the thicket. "I've searched practically the entire town, and no one's seen either of 'em since school ended."  
  
"And it's been almost four hours," Téa added, a definite note of panic evident in her usually cheerful voice.  
  
Joey groaned angrily and flopped onto the ground in frustration. "This is..." he broke off, his gaze suddenly fixed on something. "Hey, check it out! There's a path in here!"  
  
"What are you, crazy?" Tristan retorted, nudging Joey hard with his foot. "No one can get in there!"  
  
"Yes, they could!" Losing all patience, Joey grabbed Tristan's feet and yanked them out from under him. Tristan crashed to the ground in a heap.  
  
"What's the big idea, you-" Tristan trailed off suddenly. "Hey, he's right! There is a pathway! But you could only get in if you crawled really low, and you'd have to be pretty small."  
  
"Like Yugi and my sister," Joey finished. A sudden spark of hope flashed in his mind. \Maybe they fell asleep back here or something! \ Joey slid on his back under the thorny branches of the bush, until he was completely through. "Hey, guys!" His voice was muffled. "The path gets better back here! And it looks pretty worn, too- like someone's been here a lot."  
  
Tristan slid gingerly under the thorns, followed by a cringing Téa. "Hey, you're right! It really looks like someone's been here recently," Téa said, climbing to her feet and brushing the dust off of her back.  
  
"Well, let's hope the someones are Yuge and my sister," Joey said, taking off down the uneven trail, Tristan and Téa hot on his heels. By following the path, Joey managed to lead them all to the stone enclosure.  
  
"How d'you get in this thing, I wonder?" Joey said, rapping his knuckles on the stone. "Hey, Yugi! Serenity! Can you hear me?" There was no answer but the howl of the wind.  
  
"Maybe they're further along...?" suggested Téa.  
  
"Can't be," Tristan answered, coming back from having encircled the walls. "The path ends here."  
  
Téa groaned. "We're getting nowhere!" She leaned against the ivy- covered wall despairingly... and let out a little shriek as she fell backwards through the hole in the stones. "Hey guys! I found a way in!" she called out, once she realized what had happened.  
  
Joey came crashing through the ivy. The roses seemed to wave in greeting as they blew in the soft breeze- but Joey didn't notice. His terrified focus was on the two crumpled figures at the other end of the garden.  
  
"Téa! Call an ambulance!"  
  
***  
  
Serenity let out a sigh as they turned yet another corner. She wasn't exactly sure how much time had passed, but it seemed as if they'd been traveling the same monotonous corridor for hours.  
  
"I wonder if this is all just some big trick and we'll just wander here forever till we die of boredom or hunger or something," she muttered cynically.  
  
"I'm sorry, Serenity," Yugi said to her, looking crestfallen. "I really thought we'd be able to find the game faster."  
  
"It's not your fault, Yugi!" Serenity protested immediately. \Way to go. Now he thinks I'm blaming him. Even in a different dimension, I always put my foot in it whenever I talk to him! \  
  
"I really am- hey! Check it out!" Yugi was suddenly excited again. "I think we may have found the game!"  
  
Serenity looked to where Yugi was pointing. There, looming in the darkness before them, was...  
  
"A table? This is the Shadow Game?" Serenity said skeptically. "What do we do with it?"  
  
Yugi shrugged to say he wasn't sure as he crept forward cautiously. He reached the table, and picked something up. A single torch burned in a bracket, illuminating the object. It looked like a sheet of paper from what Serenity could see.  
  
"Serenity?" Yugi sounded uncertain. "It's a crossword puzzle."  
  
Serenity moved forward and looked as well. It looked like something you'd find in the Sunday paper. "So... we just have to solve the crossword puzzle to win the first game?"  
  
"I guess so. That door'll probably open when we finish it correctly." Serenity noticed for the first time the heavy wooden door at the other end of the chamber. "I don't want to get overconfident, but..." Yugi looked torn. "I really don't see how we can lose this game."  
  
"Well, let's get started then," Serenity said, Yami's words still fresh in her mind. \The sooner you get out of there, the better. \  
  
"Go ahead, sit down," Yugi invited her. "I'll stand." Serenity took her seat. As she did, a bone-rattling crash sounded throughout the chamber. The other door they had come in had slammed shut of its own accord, locking both of them in the stone dungeon. Serenity tried to slow her pounding heart as more misty words began to materialize in the air.  
  
"This puzzle must you solve  
Each question must you try  
But you must strengthen your resolve;  
This puzzle's more than meets the eye..."  
  
Serenity was beginning to get nervous now. "Yugi? What do you think that means?" she asked, trying to keep her voice confident. She got the feeling she was failing miserably.  
  
"I'm not sure, to tell you the truth," Yugi replied, watching as these words too dissipated into the darkness. "But I promise, Serenity, I won't let anything hurt you as long as I'm alive." His violet eyes glowed with a determined fire as he spoke the words. There could be no doubt that he was dead serious. "I promise."  
  
Serenity had to remind herself to keep breathing. \Wow... if I wasn't already in lo- if I didn't already like him, I sure would now...\  
  
"What's the first clue say?"  
  
"It says..." Serenity scanned the paper. " It says 'Blank Faceless Mage.'" She wrinkled her nose. "Blank Faceless Mage? What's that mean?"  
  
"Blank Faceless Mage..." Yugi murmured as he looked at the paper. "How many letters?"  
  
"Eleven," replied Serenity as she took a mental count.  
  
"Ill... illusion..." Yugi mumbled beneath his breath. "Illusionist?"  
  
Serenity lightly penciled the word in. "Well, it fits..." she said uncertainly. "Where'd you get that name, anyway?"  
  
"It's a Duel Monster card, actually," Yugi informed her, blushing slightly. "The next clue..." he suddenly seemed short of breath. Before Serenity could ask what was wrong, he continued as if nothing had happened. "What is it?"  
  
"Clue number two... It says, 'Winged Beast of the Netherworld.'"  
  
"Winged beast of the what?" Yugi said, blinking.  
  
"Netherworld. I don't know this one either..." Serenity said, spirits dropping further. \It seems like there's nothing I can do to help. \  
  
//Dark Bat.//  
  
"What?" Serenity said aloud before she could stop herself.  
  
//The answer is Dark Bat. That's a Duel Monster as well. This entire puzzle must be based off of Duel Monster cards.//  
  
"Yami says the answer is 'Dark Bat,'" Serenity transferred this bit of news to Yugi.  
  
Yugi slapped his forehead. "Of course! Dark Bat is a Winged Beast, and its description says it's from the Netherworld. Is this entire puzzle based on Duel Monsters?"  
  
"It must be," Serenity agreed. "That's what Yami said too. But if it is, I doubt I'm going to be able to help much." She looked down at the table, tears trembling in her eyes. "I feel like I'm useless at this point..." she forced a laugh, but it came out as more of a sob.  
  
"Serenity..." Yugi said gently, putting his hand on her arm. "Believe me, even if you don't know any of the answers at all, I'd still much rather have a friend with me than be alone. Not that I'm happy that Marik brought you into this..." his face darkened, with look that reminded Serenity faintly of a thunderstorm. Then his features cleared and he smiled. "But since you're here, I'm glad."  
  
Serenity gave him a watery smile. "Thank you..." she began. Suddenly she was interrupted by a soft, sinister noise emanating from the darkness of the room. It was low, horrible laughter...  
  
"Yugi?" Serenity whispered, eyes wide in fear. "What- what is that?"  
  
"I don't-" Yugi began. His voice was cut off as a piercing blue-black light illuminated the small, cell-like room. It formed a crackling sphere of energy as Yugi moved slightly to the side, obscuring Serenity from view.  
  
"I don't like this..." he murmured softly.  
  
//GET DOWN!//  
  
Startled, Serenity clapped her hands over her ears, trying to shut out the loud voice in her mind. It came back, louder and more insistent than before.  
  
//Tell Yugi to get down, now!//  
  
"Get down!" Serenity screamed, suddenly seeing what Yami was talking about. Yugi glanced over his shoulder in time to see Serenity grab his shoulders and drag him to the floor, moments before the magical energy seared over his head. Serenity opened her own eyes, only to catch sight of...  
  
A dark figure had materialized where moments before had been only blackness. It let out that horrible, sinister laugh again. As it came steadily closer, Serenity could make out not one, but three heads on its shoulders. Two looked like the heads of puppets, a girl and a boy, their painted eyes filled with an inhuman emotion, mouths opened in frightening smiles. And the center head... Serenity let out a frightened squeak. The center head was the same yellow as the puppets. A mouth opened in eerie, chilling laughter. But the mouth was all there was. The rest of the face was smooth and blank, devoid of any features, human or otherwise.  
  
"Illusionist Faceless Mage..." Yugi breathed, transfixed. "The Shadow Realm took our correct answer and brought the monster to life... That's what Marik meant by 'this puzzle's more than meets the eye!' I'll bet every answer we fill in will bring another creature to life." Yugi's face was more afraid than Serenity had ever seen it, even when he had realized where they were.  
  
"What do we do?" she asked, trying to keep her voice steady.  
  
"Now, speed is everything. We have to get these right, and fast. We have to finish the crossword before the Duel Monsters finish us!"  
  
Serenity nodded and drew a deep breath. Wincing slightly as she did so, she scribbled in the words "Dark Bat." Almost immediately, she heard loud screeches overhead. She began to tremble uncontrollably as violet- black bats, some as long as her arm, began swooping overhead, shrilling their high-pitched cries. "Yugi..." she whispered, tears threatening to overtake her face. "I don't... like bats..."  
  
"Serenity." His voice was so calm, so gentle. "Look at me." She did so automatically, her breath catching as she saw his violet eyes. "The bats will not hurt you. I promise, I'll keep them away."  
  
"Okay..." Serenity managed. "Next clue..." her mind was spinning. "Next clue is 'Blank Thorns.'"  
  
"Thorns, thorns," Yugi murmured. "Um..." he drummed his fingers on the table, casting a nervous glance at the silent Illusionist Faceless Mage in the corner. "Thorns..." he cringed as a bat swooped above his head on leathery wings, beady green eyes flashing in the shadows. "I got it!" His face lit up. "The card is Darkworld Thorns!"  
  
"D-a-r..." Serenity spelled aloud as she wrote in the third clue. "Darkworld. It fits. We have..." she bit her lip as she counted. "Seven more clues to fill in."  
  
Yugi nodded, violet eyes darting about, watching the bats flutter and screech. Suddenly he let out a sharp cry as something pulled his feet from under him. He smacked his head on the edge of the table as he fell, but still managed to grab one of the heavy stone legs.  
  
Serenity screamed as she saw what was coiled around his ankle... a massive, twisting blue-black stem, thick with thorns, was slowly gripping his leg and pulling him into the blackness. \Those came to life too! \  
  
Yugi began to gasp for breath as the thorns made their way up his slight form, beginning to entangle his torso. Serenity's mind was racing in terror. \Plants hate...\ her eyes lit on the torch. Grabbing it from the bracket, she brandished it fiercely, waving it in the direction of the snakelike tendrils. "Let him go, or I'll torch you!" she screamed, lowering the torch in what she hoped was a frightening manner.  
  
Her act seemed to work. The plant cringed away from the crimson torchlight, receding reluctantly. Its tendrils curled away into the blackness, but she knew they were still there, waiting for their chance.  
  
"Are you all right?" Serenity asked, terrified, as she knelt down and helped Yugi to sit up.  
  
"I'll be okay," Yugi managed. He gave her a shaky smile. "I told you I'm glad you're here. Otherwise, I'd be history right now." He winced, rubbing his forehead. "Ow..."  
  
"Yugi, it's your leg!" Serenity exclaimed. She could have slapped herself. \Since when have I made stupid comments like that? \ "I mean, your leg's bleeding."  
  
Yugi looked down, looking startled. He pulled up the leg of his uniform pants, revealing several deep slashes.  
  
"It must've happened when the plant grabbed me," he said. "Don't worry, I'll be fine. Right now, we need to work on finishing the puzzle." The bats' screeching had still not died away.  
  
"Right..." Serenity said uncertainly. \That leg sure doesn't look fine. \ "Clue four... 'Wind Field Magic Card- First word.'"  
  
"Wind Field Magic Card?" Yugi's face was, for the first time, blank. "I don't know that one..."  
  
"But I do!" Serenity realized suddenly. "Mai showed it to me- she had one in her deck! It was called..." she squinted, and then it came to her. "Rising Air Current!"  
  
"Nice work, Serenity," Yugi said as she scribbled in the word, giving her an admiring smile. "I never would've figured that one out-" his words were cut off as a howling wind erupted within the room, whipping Serenity's hair straight back from her face. The paper, however, seemed impervious to the wind and stayed on the table.  
  
Yugi shouted something. She couldn't hear his words, but she could tell he had mouthed, "Next clue?"  
  
Serenity nodded vigorously. \I hope this dies down soon...\ And, miraculously, it did.  
  
"It's over?" she said. \That seemed too easy...\  
  
//Most likely, there will just be several freak gusts while you're here,// Yami's voice came, startling her again. //You need to hurry.//  
  
His voice still held that underlying tone of urgency. "Okay, next," she stammered out. "Next is 'Time Bomb Monster.'"  
  
//It's Jigen Bakudon.// With the words came an image of how it was spelled. //I'm positive. Please move on.// The words were clipped and short, as if Yami was in his defensive mode again.  
  
"Jigen Bakudon..." Yugi trailed off. "Oh, Yami must've told you already. But..." his eyes opened wide. "Jigen Bakudon self-destructs after a certain amount of time. It'll-" he stopped as a ticking sound began to make itself heard above the screeching of bats and the occasional cackle from the Mage. "Oh no..."  
  
"What?"  
  
"We thought we had a time limit before..." Yugi's voice was cynical. "Now we have an even stricter one- if we don't finish fast, the entire room is gonna blow!"  
  
Serenity went numb. "This cannot possibly get any worse." Her pessimistic words were drowned out by another thunderous gust of wind.  
  
A cold chill suddenly danced down her spine. She could feel a soft touch at her ankle, beginning to coil around her...  
  
"Duck!"  
  
Yugi's shout alerted her just in time, and she dropped to her knees as a white-hot beam of magic flamed over her head. Her heart was pounding wildly. "That... was close..." she gasped out, daring to raise her head above the table. \One good thing, at least- the magic scared away the thorns. \ "Clue six..." she said, the ticking grating on her nerves. "It says, 'Summoned only with Labyrinth Wall.'"  
  
"Wall Shadow," Yugi said promptly, and Serenity dutifully scrawled in the letters. "I'm absolutely positive- Joey and I dueled one of..." he trailed off, eyes widening. "Serenity! Look out!"  
  
Whirling, her olive eyes fell on a hideous green and black beast, with piercing red eyes and murderous silver claws, slowly emerging from the wall nearest her. She was paralyzed with fear. She opened her mouth, but nothing came out. The claws came slashing downward...  
  
Serenity felt a hand on her shoulder jerk her back. She tumbled head over heals, the deadly swipe missing her head by mere inches. Just as she hit the ground, she heard a loud click, followed by yet another of the frenzied windstorms. As it died down, Yugi helped her to her feet.  
  
"We really have to hurry, now," he said grimly. His face was set. "The hand on the Jigen Bakudon just moved one number over. We're running out of time..."  
  
"Clue seven!" Serenity called out, sidling away from the walls, trying not to cry in terror. "Seven: 'Level two Fiend; Souls of the Blank.'"  
  
"Um..." Yugi bit his lip. Within her head, she could almost feel Yami's intensity of thought.  
  
//Souls of the Forgotten.// Yami sounded relieved.  
  
"Yami got it," she murmured to Yugi, who nodded as she penciled in "Forgotten."  
This time Yugi didn't even wait to see what new horror arose. "Eight?"  
  
"'Basic Blank.'" Serenity paused. "Oh wait, I know that one! I saw the Regional Championship," she explained. "The winner used a Basic Insect." Flushed with the thrill of her correct answer, Serenity didn't even think of what that meant would appear until a huge mantis-like creature popped up, right in front of her face.  
  
"Aiiieeee!" Serenity shrieked. \I hate bugs! I hate them! \  
  
There was a loud thwack. Yugi had seized the torch and smacked the Basic Insect off the table. It hissed and began to come slowly forward again.  
  
Serenity turned to thank Yugi and was met with a horrific, skeletal- like apparition. A purple-black face with a gaping mouth and gleaming yellow eyes hovered in the darkness. As Serenity backed away, it laughed a ghastly, hollow laugh that all but sent her into hysterics.  
  
"Yugi!" she sobbed, dropping to the ground and clapping her hands over her ears. "I can't do it, I can't do it, I can't! Please, make it go away!"  
  
There was the scratching sound of a pencil, and then... silence. Serenity could only hear her own ragged breathing and Yugi, coming to his knees to sit beside her.  
  
"Shh... it's okay..." he murmured, putting his arm around her shoulders. "It's okay to be afraid... we're almost done with this game."  
  
"How'd you make them stop?" Serenity sniffled, looking with tear- filled eyes at Yugi's face.  
  
"The ninth clue was 'Swords of Revealing Light.' It gives us a second to reboot, anyhow," Yugi said, gently wiping a tear from her face. "You okay? We haven't got much time left before-"  
  
The light flickered, then vanished. For a second, everything was still. Then-  
  
Pandemonium.  
  
Yugi whirled to his feet and grabbed the torch again, swinging wildly. "Serenity!" he screamed over the noise. "What's the last clue?"  
  
Serenity stumbled to her feet, when she felt something fly into her head. She let out a shriek as a Dark Bat came and peered into her face, fangs gleaming in the darkness. Suddenly her vision exploded in scarlet as the Bat was knocked from the air with a flaming torch. Yugi beat back the Insect again, and immediately whirled to face the Wall Shadow. The Darkworld Thorns had begun again to creep up his leg, as the Illusionist Mage was forming a glowing sphere laced with the yellow of the Souls' own magic. Yugi had no weapon but the single torch, and from his face, he was getting tired. \There's just too many, even for him! \ Serenity's breath was knocked from her lungs as another wild blast of wind roared up. She looked at the paper. \Clue Ten... 'This Trap enables the player to make the ultimate sacrifice- Mystical ___________.' \ "Yugi! Clue ten!" she tried to scream. It was useless. The wind was roaring louder than Serenity could ever hope to, coupled with the ghastly laughter and the screeches and all the other noises. \Yami? Do you know? \  
  
Even the spirit's reply was drowned out, the noise simply too much for his words to be heard. \I have to get this one on my own? \ She could feel herself beginning to panic as another loud click came from the Jigen Bakudon. \The ultimate... I don't know! I don't-\ suddenly, with a flash of clarity, Serenity knew.  
  
\The ultimate sacrifice! Like when Yugi was willing to take the fall for Joey! Mystical REF PANEL! I know the answer! \  
  
Serenity snatched up the pencil, her hand trembling. \R-e-f-p-a-n-e- l! \ As she drew the final line, she heard a loud crack, followed by... silence.  
  
Shaking, she dared to lift her head. They were alone again. Only faint trails of gray-colored smoke served to remind her that there had been other presences just moments before. Her gaze fell on Yugi. He was standing, trembling, the torch fallen from his hand. Slowly he lifted his violet eyes to hers. They stared at each other for a moment, everything silent. Then Yugi's face broke into the biggest smile she'd ever seen.  
  
"Serenity! You did it!"  
  
Serenity could feel herself blushing. "You and Yami did most of it..."  
  
"But you came through at the very end, when we really needed it." Yugi's face was grateful. "Thank you, Serenity."  
  
Serenity felt as though her brain had turned to mush. \Think of something to say...\ she yelled mentally at herself. "You're welcome..." she said lamely, turning an even brighter red.  
  
Yugi grinned. Suddenly his smile turned to a look of fright as the ground beneath them simply vanished. As they plunged into the black abyss for the third time that day, Serenity had time to think: \I wonder what game number two will be...\  
  
***  
  
So... what'd you all think? I gave them a pretty hard time, what with all those pleasant companions. ^_^;;  
  
I also have a question for you. Would you rather I post shorter chapters faster, or wait longer for long chapters? Also, are you interested in another view from Joey and the others, or should I stick with our friends Yugi, Yami, and Serenity?  
  
Please review! Pwease? *waves goodbye* 


	6. Blackest Memories

*Is sitting at her desk, fast asleep, with a large cement block crushing her*  
  
Joey: (comes in) What's with her?  
  
Tristan: (enters also) Beats me.  
  
Mittens: *wakes up* Um, it has something to do with this large block on my head. Just to give you a hint.  
  
Tristan: It means... there's a block party?  
  
Mittens: Aahhh... no.  
  
Joey: You're a chip off the old block?  
  
Mittens: -_- It's not that hard...  
  
Tristan: Oh! Oh! I got it! You're a blockhead!  
  
Mittens: *growls* It means I had WRITER'S BLOCK, okay?!?!  
  
Joey: Ah.  
  
Mittens: Anyway, *clears throat, glaring at Tristan* I'm sorry for taking so long to update. This chapter just didn't want to obey me. Actually, it kinda freaks me out...  
  
^_^ Muchas gracias to my friends (you make me feel so loved):  
  
Sakura30: I'm glad you liked the Shadow Game! Yami and Serenity have a little chat this time around, so we'll see what the Pharaoh thinks soon enough.  
  
Anime-crazed33: There's another view from people outside the Shadow Realm this time! And, another one of my freakish Shadow Games makes an appearance... I really hope you like this chapter!  
  
DJ Rodriguez: *blushes* Thanks so much for the compliments- and the new Duel Monsters cards! I got a present! YAY! *shuffles cards into deck* More action is headed your way, DJ!  
  
A Watcher: Thankies for the review! Hope you continue to enjoy my writing!  
  
squallwis04: Thanks for joining my band of reviewers! Hope you like the next chapter!  
  
Red Roses2: Thanks so much for reviewing my chapters! I'm glad your mom lets you read my story- there's nothing bad in it, I swear. Enjoy!  
  
\Lalala\: thoughts  
  
//Lalala//: Yami speaking  
  
**Lalala**: Mysterious occurrence (ooh, exciting!)  
  
Disclaimer: Sorry, but Yu-Gi-Oh is not mine. Most likely, it's never gonna be mine. But hey, I can dream, right?  
  
"I'm With You"  
  
Chapter Six: Darkest Memories  
  
As the blackness rushed past, Serenity closed her eyes again. Although by now she knew she wouldn't get hurt when they got where they were going, she was still frightened watching what she supposed was the ground rush up toward her face. \Hurry up and get there already... \  
  
Suddenly she felt herself come to a screeching halt. Opening one eyes cautiously, she peered around her. Her heart sank. \This looks exactly like when we were waiting for the first game! \  
  
"Yugi?" she asked. When no answer came, she looked around her. Yugi still had not moved from the position he had landed in, sitting on the ground with his face turned to the mist-obscured earth. He was trembling very slightly, and his breathing sounded ragged. "Yugi?" she repeated, feeling a bubble of panic swell within her.  
  
Yugi finally lifted his head and gave her a smile, though it looked a bit forced. "Nothing's wrong, Serenity. I was just thinking, is all." He climbed slowly to his feet and offered her his hand.  
  
Serenity took it and again, felt a flash of fear. \I hope nothing's wrong... \ she shook her head. \It's got to be my imagination. It is. \ She pushed the thought out of her mind.  
  
//Serenity?//  
  
She didn't even jump this time. Feeling rather proud of herself, she mentally replied, \What's up, Yami? \  
  
//May I speak through you for a moment?//  
  
\Sure. What do you want me to say? \  
  
There was a beat of silence, then Yami spoke again. //You misunderstand me. I mean literally speak through you. It will be me talking in your body. I won't do it if you don't want me to, of course. It is your body, after all.//  
  
Serenity felt a pang of uncertainty. \Well... I guess. It won't... hurt or anything, will it? \  
  
//No. It will only be for a moment..//  
  
Serenity saw a flash of gold-colored light in her mind's eye. Suddenly something spoke through her mouth, in words that were not her own.  
  
"Yugi? Hold on for a moment."  
  
Serenity would have laughed if she'd been able. Or maybe she would have cried. She wasn't exactly certain. The voice sounded faintly like her and yet not at all like her. It was female, to be sure, but while Serenity spoke shyly and softly, this voice was deeper, more mature, and brimming with self-assuredness and confidence.  
  
The look on Yugi's face told her he didn't know what to think. "Serenity?" he asked uncertainly. "That's not you, is it?"  
  
"Hmm." The voice held a note of amusement. "So this is what I'd sound like as a female."  
  
"Yami?" Yugi squeaked, face changing from confusion to complete and utter disbelief. "That's you?"  
  
"Apparently." Yami's female voice sounded fascinated. Serenity giggled mentally. "Yugi, are you all right?" The voice was worried now, igniting Serenity's own worry anew.  
  
"Yes, Yami, I'm fine." Yugi's gentle voice held a clipped, sharp note to it, as though his yami was approaching subjects he didn't want discussed. "We already talked about this, remember?"  
  
"Yes, but if you-"  
  
"Yami, I promise, I feel fine." Yugi grinned, this time the smile looking genuine rather than forced. "Really. So let's just focus on what's coming, shall we?" For a moment pain seemed to flash across his face. It was gone so quickly Serenity felt sure she must have imagined it.  
  
Serenity heard a sigh in her mind and felt Yami withdraw. \Yami? What was that about? Is something wrong with Yugi? \  
  
There was a long silence, only serving to further Serenity's worries. Finally, Yami spoke again. //I'm sorry, Serenity, but I promised I would not bring anything up. Anyway, I could be imagining everything.// The voice, though definitely sincere in the apology, held a firm ending note to it, closing all possible discussion.  
  
\But-\ Serenity felt a wave of annoyance flood over the link she shared with Yami. She didn't dare finish the thought as she and Yugi walked through the monotonous landscape.  
  
For a long time, no one said anything. Then finally, Serenity ventured to speak with Yami again. \Yami? \  
  
//Hmm?//  
  
\Why were you so angry when the crossword puzzle answer was Jigen Bakudan? It's just a Duel Monster like all the others. In fact, I'd have to say that was one of the less-frightening ones the magic brought to life. \  
  
There was a heavy sigh. //I can't tell you exactly, but that monster reminds me of a time when I almost lost Yugi.// There was a silence, but Serenity didn't press the spirit. She wanted to know what he would say too badly to risk angering him. //We were dueling... I knew he needed to take a break but he wouldn't let me help. He nearly died, and it frightened me beyond anything I've ever felt before. Obviously, that creature holds bad memories for me.//  
  
Serenity had her eyes lowered. \You really are his protector, huh? \  
  
She felt a smile in her mind. //I try. He is my light, so we have a deep connection. I would be just a half of a soul without Yugi. More than that, though, he is such a rare person that I can't help but care about his well-being.//  
  
\Yes... he is a rare person... rare and so wonderful... \  
  
//Serenity?//  
  
Serenity felt her face mantle even in the chill air of the Shadow Realm. She bit her tongue, mentally kicking herself.  
  
//What was that about?//  
  
\Nothing, Yami. \ This time, it was she who sent the annoyance and desire to end the conversation across the link.  
  
//Serenity-//  
  
\I said it was nothing! I was just talking to myself. \ She knew her excuse was weak, but found herself praying he'd accept it. \Please, Yami, can we just talk about something else? Please? \  
  
There was a sigh. //All right, Serenity. I won't pry into your thoughts. However, I do think you should know that if you have feelings for my hikari, there's no harm in sharing them with him. Otherwise, you may never know if he feels the way you do.// With these words, Yami withdrew from the link, leaving Serenity with plenty to agonize over.  
  
***  
  
Ryou Bakura ran through the streets, his pale hair tousled by the wind and dark eyes panicked. "Yugi!" he called out in his accented voice. "Yugi, where are you?"  
  
\I can't believe I let my guard down, \ he berated himself. \I know I have to be vigilant to prevent the spirit of my Millennium Ring from taking over. What was wrong with me? \ After school that day, he had suddenly and inexplicably blacked out. When he came to, he was halfway across town. He knew what that meant.  
  
\I need to find Yugi and make sure the spirit didn't do any serious harm while he was in control. The spirit has a one-track mind when it comes to the Millennium Puzzle- I hope he didn't manage to do any serious harm. I have to find out- and that means finding Yugi. \ "Yugi!" he let out another shout. Suddenly, he heard the distant wail of sirens pierce the air. His heart froze, even though his mind told him he was overreacting. \Please don't tell me... \ he turned and headed in the direction of the sirens.  
  
Halfway down the block, an ambulance barreled by, red lights glaring in the early evening twilight. Bakura flinched at the piercing screech. As it roared by, he saw close behind a few familiar faces.  
  
"Joey!"  
  
Joey turned, startled. "Bakura?" His blonde hair was unruly, and he sounded out of breath.  
  
"Joey, have you seen Yugi anywhere? I think that the spirit..." Bakura trailed off, a sense of panic growing within him. "Joey, nothing's wrong, is it?"  
  
"Yugi and my sister disappeared after school," Joey said bluntly without preamble. "We found 'em just a few minutes back. They're both unconscious..." Joey clenched a fist, shaking slightly as he tried to hold in his emotion.  
  
"I called nine-one-one and they're on their way to the hospital now," Téa said. Her chin was trembling and she looked to be trying not to cry. "We have no idea what's wrong with either of them."  
  
Bakura's eyes closed momentarily. "This is all my fault..." he whispered. "The spirit of my Ring... I think he did something..."  
  
The three were silent. They knew first-hand just how much harm the spirit of the Ring could do. Finally Téa said softly, trying to reassure their friend, "You don't know that's what it was. None of us do. It's not your fault."  
  
Bakura smiled, though there was no happiness in the expression. "I'm afraid I disagree... but enough about me. Let's get to the hospital right away."  
  
"Right!" echoed the others as they resumed their panicked journey. Shadow fell over the four as dim gray clouds obscured the sun, and a few lone raindrops splashed onto the ground.  
  
***  
  
"Serenity! I think we're at the next game."  
  
Yugi's words jerked her out of her thoughts. Looking ahead, she had no idea what to expect this time around. The crossword puzzle had been a shock, first in its seeming simplicity and then in what it could really bring about. Now, Serenity felt her unease growing as her green eyes landed on...  
  
"You mean that bridge?" she said uncertainly. The rickety thing looked more like rotting wood held together by four grimy strands of rope than a bridge. Any self-respecting architect would have torn the thing down years ago. It creaked and swayed ominously in a non-existent breeze, as Serenity ventured closer, Yugi protectively hovering in front of her.  
  
"Serenity, stay back here." She looked inquisitively at Yugi, feeling a bubble of warmth at his tone. "I'll check it out first, just in case." Serenity opened her mouth to protest, but Yugi silenced her with a look.  
  
Nervously Yugi edged closer to the end of the land. He peered down and gasped, drawing a sharp breath at whatever it was he saw. "I think it's safe, but stay back from the edge," he whispered, not taking his eyes from whatever it was down in that canyon.  
  
\Well, after that, do I even want to go closer? \ Serenity swallowed hard and inched forward. She had been prepared for lava, spikes, some unspeakably horrific creature- but not this.  
  
Below the bridge, there was nothing but blackness. Absolute, total lack of light. More than simply lacking light, though, this seemed as though it was a higher level of darkness. Rather than being black, it seemed to suck all light from the surroundings as well. A black mist emanated from the chasm, and cold wind blew from somewhere within the sinister depths.  
  
"Well." Yugi broke the silence. "This is creepy. Not that I like hearing from Marik..." he paused, closing his violet eyes briefly. "But I'm almost hoping he'll give us some instructions again."  
  
As if his words had cued some spell within the Shadow Realm, the familiar silvery mist swirled up from the empty air. Serenity began to read:  
  
"Find your way across the canyon  
  
If the third door you would find  
But your will do not abandon  
Some pain enters from the mind..."  
  
As the words dissipated, Serenity could feel her legs trembling. \This is too, too scary. 'Some pain enters from the mind...' \ she shivered.  
  
"I'll go first," Yugi said, to break the silence. His voice was trembling ever so slightly as he nervously stepped onto the bridge, clinging tightly to the ropes on either side of the bridge. The wood creaked but did not break, and Yugi took another step, and then another. Serenity followed cautiously, eyes twitching to the sides at the merest hint of movement in the blackness.  
  
\Just don't look down,\ she told herself firmly, forcing her eyes to focus on the other edge of the canyon that gradually drew closer and closer. Don't look-  
  
Yugi was down so suddenly Serenity thought for certain a board must have snapped. But the bridge was still whole. \What's going on? \ her mind screamed. Yugi was on his knees, forehead to the wood, hands clapped over his ears.  
  
"Yugi!" she shouted, inching forward and wincing as the wood groaned beneath her feet. "Yugi, what's wrong?"  
  
"NO!" Yugi screamed out suddenly, startling her badly. "NO! GRANDPA! NOOOO!" He began to beat his fists on the bridge, as though pounding on an invisible barrier.  
  
"YUGI!" Serenity screamed, terrified. "What's going on?" she cried out loud, ignoring the mind-link.  
  
For a moment, no answer came. Then Yami's voice blasted through her head. //YUGI! Wake up! You can't be gone...// He sounded as if he were barely holding back tears... he was oblivious to everything she had said.  
  
Serenity's jade-green eyes were wide with terror. \What's going-\  
  
**"Serenity, I'm sorry to tell you this, but... we can no longer do anything to save your vision. Unless you see a specialist and have a special operation, you will be completely blind within a matter of months."  
  
Serenity felt her eyes well up with tears. "No..." she whimpered, burying her face in her hands. Never to see her mother's face again? Never to watch the sunset, to read a book, to look through photographs...  
  
She would never see Joey again...**  
  
"Joey!" she screamed suddenly. Startled, she glanced around her, heart pounding in her ears. She was kneeling on the bridge again. Her brother's name had brought her out of her reverie. \It seemed so real... \ She gasped. She could feel memories clawing at her mind, fighting to take control.  
  
"NO!" She staggered to his feet, wobbling as the bridge swayed. Yugi was huddled, shaking, as he whispered, "Grandpa... Where are you?" He was perilously close to the edge.  
  
"Yugi!" Serenity yelled as loudly as she could manage. "Yugi, snap out of it!" She lunged forward and grabbed his shoulder, dragging him backwards. "Yugi!"  
  
Yugi blinked suddenly, as if awakening from a long sleep. "Serenity?" he whispered, eyes losing the despairing cast they had held moments before. "I'm not... at my house? It didn't happen?"  
  
"No," Serenity said, stumbling over her words in a haste to explain. "This bridge- I think it makes us relive all our worst memories. I think-"  
  
**"I give up!" she screamed at the starless sky. "I can't find anyone, or anything! I don't know where in the world I am, and no one cares and no one's looking for me!"**  
  
"Serenity!"  
  
This time it was Yugi who brought her to her own senses. "You're right! Let's get moving- NOW!"  
  
Serenity and Yugi began to sprint across the bridge, abandoning their earlier caution for speed. \Yami, snap out of it! Yugi's right here! \  
  
//Serenity?//  
  
Serenity could have cried in relief. Yami seemed to have been released from his memory as well. The bridge rocked back and forth. Suddenly a huge jerk sent her tumbling forward.  
  
** Desperately, she listened hard for something- anything- other than the incessant rain, but there was nothing, not even a far-off car motor. The bridge was deserted. "Please? Anyone?" Her voice grew increasingly more hysterical as she began to cry, tears mingling with the raindrops on her face.**  
  
//Serenity!//  
  
She blinked suddenly. Yami had awoken her from her horrific memories, and she leapt to her feet. Yugi was on his hands and knees, crying softly. "I lost my only chance... how can I trust the Spirit now?"  
  
These words obviously had some meaning for Yami, because a wave of pain crashed over the link. //Yugi! I'm sorry... please- let me help you!//  
  
Serenity stumbled forward and shook Yugi. His eyes lost their dull, glazed look and he shook himself out of the memory. "Sorry..."  
  
"What was that before?" Serenity said, as they both continued their breakneck pace across the bridge.  
  
"One of the ropes snapped!" Yugi said, with a terrified glance over his shoulder. "I don't know-" he broke off, shuddering, trying to hold back the remembrances.  
  
"Keep going!" Serenity screamed, startling both him and Yami out of their stupors. "We're almost there!"  
  
Suddenly Yugi tripped and went somersaulting across the wood. He tumbled hard and skidded to a stop- on the other side of the canyon. Immediately he clambered to his feet, all traces of the realer-than-life memories gone from his face. "C'mon, Serenity!"  
  
Serenity ran... she was so close! Suddenly, she had the sensation that her feet were dropping out from under her. Almost in slow motion, she could feel the bridge falling. \The second rope must've snapped... \ she thought, eerily calm. It was replaced with terror as she jut managed to take hold of a crevice in between two boards before the bridge was slammed against the canyon wall.  
  
"Serenity!" Yugi's scream was terrified. "Grab my hand!" He leaned out over the blackness of the canyon, bending precariously over the edge.  
  
Serenity stretched up her fingers...  
  
**"Get in the car, Serenity. We're leaving."  
  
"But Mommy! Joey's not here!"  
  
"Joey's not coming. Now come on!" There were tears in her mothers voice.  
  
Serenity was sobbing as the car engine started. As they pulled away, she heard her brother's voice. "Serenity!"  
  
"Joey!" she wailed.**  
  
"She's not responding!" Yugi screamed to no one. Serenity had stopped reaching up, and there were tears in her eyes. "Come on!" He slid forward even more, stretching as far as he could. It did no good. He was already too far over for safety- he could reach no further. And with Serenity trapped in her memories, he was at a loss of what to do.  
  
//Serenity! Wake up!//  
  
**"Wait! Serenity!" Her brother ran as fast as his six-year-old legs could carry him.  
  
"Joey!" she cried, pressing her hands against the glass of the window.  
  
Dimly, another voice called her name. "Serenity!" She ignored it. "Joey! Come back! Mommy, wait for Joey!"  
  
"This isn't working!" said the voice. "Serenity!" She was despairing...  
  
Suddenly, a picture bloomed in her mind. A violet-eyed boy reached over and shyly handed her a beautiful crimson rose. "From a friend to a friend," he said softly, giving her one of those sunny smiles.**  
  
"Yugi!" she screamed. Eyes losing their blankness, she stared up. Yugi's hand was there. If she could just...  
  
Reaching out with all her might, Serenity just managed to touch Yugi's hand with hers. His fingers closed on her wrist and, with a strength seemingly born out of nowhere, Yugi levered her up the cliff and yanked her to the ground beside him, seconds before the molding ropes snapped and the entire bridge plummeted into the blackness of the chasm.  
  
For a long moment, there was silence, broken only by both Yugi's and Serenity's hyperventilation. Finally, Serenity looked at Yugi, trembling beyond anything she'd ever felt.  
  
Yugi's violet eyes were wide and haunted by the ghosts of memories that were only now beginning to flee. His face was tearstained. Serenity impulsively touched her own face. It, too, was wet with tears. Without any warning at all, both Serenity and Yugi simultaneously smiled, smiles of relief and intense joy. Serenity scooted over slightly and laid her head on Yugi's shoulder. Shyly, he put an arm around her shoulders and they simply sat there, enjoying the peace. Neither one said a word. Neither one wanted to break the connection.  
  
***  
  
...  
  
So, how was it? Good? Bad? Ugly? None of the above?  
  
Please, drop me a review and tell me what you think! Your reviews are what keep me writing this at all! =^_^=  
  
You guys are great! *gives all reviewer-friends big bags of candy* I hope to see you again soon!  
  
From the Authoress (who is NOT a blockhead) ^_^ 


	7. Riddles in the Darkness

*Looks around* Hi everyone!  
  
=^_^=  
  
It's so nice to see you here! It means I'm writing something people like to read- which is good. Yup. Definitely.  
  
Thanks are in order to the following wonderful people:  
  
Anime-crazed33: More from the outside world? Check!  
  
Red Roses2: No writer's block this time... except for one thing that I'll explain more later. Thanks for the rose! I got two presents now! ^_^ I feel so loved!  
  
Pooka228: Thank you! I love this pairing- they're so cute together. Thanks so much for the compliments too. *blushes*  
  
Miruchan-01: Amazing how two words can make me feel happy for two hours. ^_^ Thanks, and thanks also for adding me to your Favorites list! *blushes*  
  
DJ Rodriguez: I love getting your reviews. They always make me so happy, to know someone really likes the way I write. Thank you for being such a great reviewer!  
  
A Watcher: Yeah, I don't think Marik's first priority is making the games fun. Marik is mean, I agree. And Bakura is indeed on a massive guilt trip. ^_^ Like I said, that last game creeped me out... *shivers*  
  
helldragon4000: Thanks for the review! I'm glad the fact that this is a romance didn't deter you... ^_^ ooo, I used a fancy word.  
  
Sakura30: Update! Enjoy!  
  
Nightlight5: I love reading fics where Yami's overprotective. Dunno why... guess I just think it's cute. Anyway, thanks for stopping by and taking the time to drop me a review!  
  
\La-dee-dah\: Thoughts  
  
//La-dee-dah//: Yami speaking  
  
Disclaimer: Yu-Gi-Oh isn't mine in any way, shape or form. I'd like it if it was... Christmas is coming soon... *hint hint*  
  
"I'm With You"  
  
Chapter Seven: Riddles in the Darkness  
  
Yugi let out a soft sigh. It was quiet, but it was enough to break the trance Serenity had been in ever since the bridge snapped. Serenity turned her gaze to Yugi's face. She couldn't put her finger on it... but there was something bothering her. \When he pulled me up from the chasm...\ she shivered, trying to forget the feeling of dangling there, an inch away from disappearing into that darkness. \Why is something about that nagging at me? \  
  
Serenity stood up suddenly. Startled, Yugi glanced up at her. "Give me your hand, Yugi," she said.  
  
Yugi's face was confused, but- something about his eyes looked worried. "That's okay," he said, stretching out his legs. "I can stand up on my own."  
  
"No, Yugi. Give me your hand." Serenity left no room for debate. She hated speaking this harshly to him, but she hated this ominous feeling even more. \Please, don't let him get mad at me. \  
  
Yugi, instead of answering, put a hand on one of his knees. He started to rise. Suddenly, Serenity felt a jolt right in the depths of her heart as Yugi swayed suddenly. He put a hand to his heart compulsively as he dropped back to the ground, hitting on one knee with a soft moan.  
  
"Yugi?" Her voice was no longer firm and in control. Rather, she knew it was trembling, but she didn't care. "What's wrong? Please, tell me."  
  
Yugi let out a breath and bowed his head. Slowly he raised a hand and let Serenity take it in hers.  
  
Serenity gasped. His hand was freezing and shaking badly in hers. As he came tremblingly to his feet, keeping his eyes cast downward, Serenity put her free hand on his forehead. It, too, was cold as winter ice.  
  
"Yugi!" Now, she knew her face as well as her voice was laced with panic. "What's wrong?"  
  
"I'm all right, Serenity," Yugi rasped. His voice was hoarse and weak, only serving to set her heart pounding even harder. \Forget the next game for now... what's wrong with Yugi? \  
  
"No, you aren't! There's something wrong that you're not telling me." Serenity willed him to look up at her. As if he sensed it, he raised his violet eyes to meet hers.  
  
\Yami? What's wrong with Yugi? \  
  
There was a brief silence. //He didn't want me to tell you...//  
  
\Tell me what? \ Serenity knew her thoughts were louder than they needed to be, but she continued to transmit her question over the link.  
  
//He didn't want me to tell you what the Shadow Realm was doing to him.// Yami took a deep breath. //The Shadow Realm's power, besides the magic it can conduct, is that it slowly strains the souls of those who walk within it. If one person is here for too long, their soul can be shredded and lost forever. The pain of wandering the Shadow Realm is...// he searched for the right words. //Unbearable.//  
  
\But I don't feel anything at all! \ Serenity knew she was grasping at straws, but she couldn't bring herself to accept what he had just told her, however reluctantly the words had come.  
  
//That's why Yugi didn't want me to tell you. He gave you the Puzzle because I can protect the one wearing it and myself from much of the pain and stress. My magic only stretches to the wearer of the Puzzle, and he wanted to make sure you were safe.//  
  
\Yami? He's going to be okay, right? \ Serenity's own hands were shaking now, but in fear, not pain.  
  
//Yugi is strong, but he's also young. Also, he's been through this pain before, making him even more vulnerable.// Yami's voice was trembling slightly as he continued. //The sooner you get out of there, the better.//  
  
Serenity ended the mental conversation and stared at Yugi. Now that she was really looking, she could see that he was very pale, face startlingly white in contrast to the darkness of the shadows around them. His face looked drawn and tense, as if he were struggling not to show an agonizing pain, and shadows were beginning to appear beneath his violet eyes.  
  
"Yugi?" Her voice was barely above a whisper. "Why didn't you tell me?"  
  
Yugi sighed, closing his eyes briefly. "Yami told?"  
  
"Yes. Yugi, you shouldn't give up the only form of protection you have! Yami said you're vulnerable to this place because you've been here so long before. I don't... want you to..." Serenity's chin trembled, and she could feel tears making their way down her face.  
  
"Serenity, please listen to me, all right?" When she nodded, he continued. "I can deal with the pain. It would be putting someone else in danger because I was too afraid to face it myself that I couldn't deal with." His eyes flashed furiously as he gazed over her head, seeing something she could not. "Marik had no business dragging you into this. His problem is with me, not you. You were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. You shouldn't even have to be here..." he trailed off, trying to calm himself down. "But since I can do nothing to help get you out of here, at least I can keep you safe for as long as you're in here."  
  
"But Yugi..." Serenity got an idea. Impulsively, she yanked the chain of the Puzzle over her neck, lifting off the heavy golden pyramid.  
  
"Serenity, what are you-"  
  
Serenity shoved the Puzzle into his hands. "You take it for a while, and then we can switch back! I-" she broke off with a gasp.  
  
Her head was spinning. She sank to the hard ground, gasping. Icy fingers crept down her spine, as pain whirled throughout her body. She could feel herself shuddering, but was unable to hold herself still. \Make it stop! \  
  
Suddenly, she felt the cool metal of the chain slip around her neck again, and the weight of the Millennium Puzzle in its familiar place. For a moment, nothing happened; then, the warmth surrounded her again and her vision cleared.  
  
Yugi drew shaking hands back from the Puzzle. "Serenity, do not take the Puzzle off again. Promise me."  
  
"Yugi..." she began to protest. \If it felt like that for me after ten seconds, what must he be feeling like? \  
  
"Promise me."  
  
His eyes were bright with suppressed pain and stood out sharply in his pale face. Serenity looked down at her hands, unable to hold his gaze for long. "I promise..." she whispered, wishing it wasn't true. But she knew even if he hadn't made her promise, she might not have had the courage to remove the Puzzle again.  
  
"Good." Yugi smiled at her, fire gone from his gentle face. Smile fading, he put a hand on her shoulder. "Serenity, I'll be okay. Promise." Serenity sighed, then nodded and gave him a rather unconvincing smile, which he returned.  
  
"Ready to-" Yugi drew in his breath sharply, doubling over and clutching his ribs. "Keep... going?" he managed.  
  
Serenity bit her lip and nodded. "Let's get moving," she said, all the while feeling more useless than she'd ever felt before. \Now we really need to hurry...\  
  
After a few moments, Yugi straightened up, face even whiter than it had been before. The Shadow Realm's pain seemed to have receded for the moment, and Yugi led the way as Serenity followed, mentally panicking.  
  
They had been traveling for the span of just a few minutes when Yami's deep voice entered her thoughts. //Stop.//  
  
\What? \  
  
//The game. I can sense it drawing close. Wait here for it.//  
  
Obediently, Serenity stopped. She knew better now than to butt heads with the ancient spirit. She relayed the information to Yugi, trying the whole time not to look too worried.  
  
"I wonder..." Yugi murmured thoughtfully. "If this is the game..."  
  
"...Then why hasn't Marik sent us instructions?" Serenity finished.  
  
"Because, he does not need to," said a third voice. Serenity squeaked, and Yugi's head jerked in the direction of the sound. His violet eyes widened as a dark figure seemed to materialize from the blackness beyond...  
  
***  
  
Joey drummed his fingers on the arm of his chair, fidgeting uncomfortably. \ Why do hospital waiting room chairs have to be so painful? It's hard enough for the people who are here anyway... \ he closed his eyes momentarily, trying not to think about his friend and sister. He opened them and looked around.  
  
Bakura was staring into space. He had said nothing the entire time, and Joey had a feeling even if he tried to talk to the boy, Bakura wouldn't hear him. He was feeling that guilty. Tristan, too, was sitting in silence.  
  
Téa was at the counter, listening closely for whatever news she could catch on her two friends' conditions. Periodically she would ask the receptionist if they could visit yet, only to be told no each time.  
  
Suddenly, with a soft click, the emergency room door opened and a doctor stepped out. Joey's head snapped up, hope evident on his face. Launching to his feet, he crossed the room in two swift strides, halting directly in front of the startled medic.  
  
"Mr. Wheeler?" questioned the doctor, regaining his composure and checking the clipboard he held.  
  
"Yeah, that's me," Joey said. "This is Téa, Tristan, and Bakura," pointing to each in turn. "Now, what's wrong with Yugi and Serenity?"  
  
"I can tell you about your sister, but Mr. Moto's information can be revealed only to a family member," the doctor said firmly.  
  
"But sir, his grandfather's away! He's got no family in the entire country right now!" Téa broke in.  
  
"I'm sorry, but rules are rules..." began the doctor.  
  
"Listen up. We're the closest thing to family Yugi has right now, and we all care about him just as much. Are you gonna tell us what we want to know, or not?" Joey felt tears stinging at his eyes but refused to let them fall.  
  
The doctor sighed. "All right, but don't tell the administration I bent the rules," he admonished. "Serenity is the brown-haired girl?" At Joey's nod, he continued, "She's in a coma-like state, but is otherwise completely healthy. As far as we can see, she fell unconscious for an unknown reason- or perhaps, no reason at all- and there are no medical conditions connected with it. Most likely, she just fainted. She should awaken in a matter of hours."  
  
"All right!" Joey, Tristan, and Téa let out simultaneous sighs of profound relief. Bakura, however, pushed forward, seeming to understand the implications of what the doctor had neglected to say. "And... Yugi's like that too, right?" he asked, fear of the answer evident in his voice. "He just lost consciousness and he'll be fine?"  
  
The doctor looked down briefly. This simple gesture was enough to bring back Joey's worry in full force. "Right?" he said, his own voice pleading for the doctor to agree with him.  
  
"Yugi Moto..." the doctor sighed and glanced over his shoulder. "Yugi is in the same vegetative state as Serenity. However, he..." The doctor was clearly having trouble getting the words out. "His condition is deteriorating rapidly." Seemingly unaware that these words had left all four of his listeners speechless, he continued in a rush. "We have no idea what's causing it, but his vital signs are decreasing and his health is progressively worsening. We should know more when the blood tests come back."  
  
"But... he's going to be okay, right?" Téa said pleadingly, begging silently for the doctor to say yes.  
  
"I'm truly sorry, but I don't know."  
  
These words had the single effect to completely crush the spirits of the four who were standing there. Joey's eyes widened and his face paled. Téa's blue eyes were shining with tears, and, shockingly, Bakura's dark ones were too. Tristan looked stunned beyond saying anything at all.  
  
The doctor looked from one stricken face to another. Finally he sighed. "Follow me. I'll take you to see your friends." Still in shock, the four entered silently, no one daring to say a single word.  
  
***  
  
"Who's there?" Yugi called out. "Show yourself!"  
  
"Yugi, if they work for Marik, I don't know if I want to see them..." Serenity whispered nervously, holding the Puzzle in her hands out of habit.  
  
"Excuse me." The voice sounded offended. "I work for no one."  
  
Yugi's eyes widened, and Serenity had to stifle a gasp. From the shadows had come not a person, but one of the strangest creatures she had ever seen.  
  
From the neck up, she looked human. Her hair was long and golden, framing a tan face and two intense amber eyes that seemed to stare straight through them, into their souls. Her entire face was regal and imperious. Her bearing alone would have set her apart from other humans, but that was the smallest of the differences. Sandy fur sparkled dimly in the non-light of the Shadow Realm. Her entire body was that of a lion, paws padding silently on the ground. Her tail twitched over her head as she regarded them with an interest not descending to the level of curiosity.  
  
//Incredible,// breathed Yami from inside her head. At almost the same moment, Yugi whispered reverently, "Amazing."  
  
Serenity knew she was staring in awe, but she couldn't help it. She recognized this creature from somewhere... what was it called?  
  
//It's a sphinx,// Yami said, sounding as if he didn't realize he was speaking aloud. //A mythical guardian-beast of ancient Egypt.//  
  
Yugi's eyes were huge and awed. The sphinx regarded him with amusement before turning her powerful amber gaze to Serenity.  
  
"I work for no one," she repeated, voice musical and every bit as intense as her face. "I am a creature of this realm, summoned to take part in a game."  
  
"Then you work for Marik!" Yami's female voice came blasting out of Serenity's body, stunning both her and Yugi momentarily. //Sorry,// he apologized, mental voice embarrassed as he realized what he'd inadvertently done.  
  
"No. I work for whoever calls the magic. I stand alone; I hold no alliance. Now, will you choose to begin the game or not?" The sphinx seemed impassionate about what the reply would be; she obviously did not care one way or the other.  
  
Yugi looked wordlessly to Serenity; she nodded, feeling the familiar twinge of nervousness. "Yes. We're ready," he said, returning his focus to the sphinx.  
  
She nodded, face for the first time showing a spark of excitement. "Hear me then."  
  
"Welcome, fair travelers,  
Now hark to my voice.  
To let you pass by  
Is a thing of my choice.  
  
"Answer my riddle,  
Move one step along.  
But a black fate awaits you  
Should you answer wrong.  
  
"One guess are you given  
One chance to guess right  
If you fail, you will stay  
Fore'er in this night.  
  
"Now listen quite closely  
To what I shall say  
For if you'd escape  
This is the sole way.  
  
"The front of the front  
Must be aligned  
With the first of the last  
If the answer you'll find.  
  
"Next add the sound  
You would most often see  
When an object belongs  
To you and to me.  
  
"Add the first of the name  
Of the children of night  
Who dance in blue velvet  
And hide in the light  
  
"These clues are the three  
You will need for your guess  
The final conclusion  
Must answer the rest  
  
"In colorful frocks  
They dance on the land  
Only to die  
By a passerby's hand  
  
"Now give me your answer  
You must give the name  
Of these much-valued tokens  
In love's fragile game.  
  
"The riddle has ended  
Your strife has begun  
You may only pass by  
Once the game has been won."  
  
Finished, the sphinx sat smugly on her haunches and regarded them with her cool amber gaze.  
  
Serenity's head was spinning. Glancing at Yugi, she saw a hint of panic in his violet eyes. He fought it down and asked the sphinx politely, "Excuse me?"  
  
She turned the full intensity of her gaze onto him. He flinched slightly but continued, "May I see the riddle?"  
  
She did not answer or even indicate she had heard his question, save for a peculiar flash of her cinnamon eyes. Around her, golden mist gathered and formed the airborne letters they had become so accustomed to seeing. As the words of the riddle floated before Serenity's face, she fought to get rid of the headache that was beginning to form at the strangeness of the poem.  
  
"The front of the front..." Yugi murmured. He suddenly broke off with a strangled gasp, words torn from his lungs. His face contorted in agony as he dropped to his knees, clutching his chest and gasping for air.  
  
"Yugi!" Serenity dropped down beside him, arm around his shoulders to hold him steady. He was trembling in her grasp as he fought to control the pain of the Shadow Realm that was beginning to devastate his soul.  
  
Serenity was terrified. \This third game seems impossible to win! But we've got no choice. If we don't move fast and get through here, Yugi's going to be in major trouble, and it will all be because of me. \ Yami's words echoed in her thoughts. //That soul can be shredded and lost forever...//* She shook her head stubbornly. \I can't let that happen to him! I... I won't! \  
  
***  
  
^_^ Contest-sorta-thinger here!  
  
Can anyone solve the sphinx's riddle? I wrote it myself, which is why this chapter took longer than I originally expected. The stupid thing did not want to RHYME! DIE! *stabs pad of paper with sharpened pencil* *looks around* A-hem... =^_^=  
  
Whoever sends me the right answer by e-mail or review first gets... um... some sort of special thing. I'll work on that part. Maybe, a chapter dedication, a small role in another fic...? I don't know. If you win, you can help me decide.  
  
I hope you enjoyed this! Please review!  
  
Bye now! ^_^ 


	8. A Roll of the Die

*salutes*  
  
Hi everyone! I'm baaaaaack!  
  
*crickets*  
  
A-hem...  
  
Thankies to all you people:  
  
A Watcher: Thanks! It took me a looong time to make that riddle rhyme. And now I just made something rhyme without meaning to, didn't I? Oh, the irony...  
  
Sakura30: Bakura, they are not bakas, thank you very much! Anywho, confession might be coming up... unless something unexpected happens. *evil grin*  
  
Red Roses2: *smells flowers* Aah. Grazie, Red Roses2. *puts in pretty vase* Actually, for some of it you were pretty close...  
  
Anime-crazed33: *does a happy dance right along with you*  
  
DJ Rodriguez: That's why I love Yugi too. He's so sweet and selfless. That's only the zillionth time I've said that... ^_^;;  
  
Nightlight5: You're going to hate me by the end of this chapter. *cries* Please, don't hate me, even if, hypothetically, I were to leave another cliffhanger? ^_^;;  
  
Scarlett and Scar: Thanks for checking out my story! I'm glad you like the pairing, I do too. (No duh. *smacks forehead*) And I promise I'm not plagiarizing.  
  
Pooka228: Gracias! As for your guess... you will see...  
  
lexmark: See above. ^_^  
  
\Stuff and Nonsense\: Thoughts  
  
//Stuff and Nonsense//: Yami speaking  
  
You'll find out the winner- if there is one- of my contest at the end of the chapter!  
  
Disclaimer: Yo no tengo el programa de television de Yu-Gi-Oh.  
  
"I'm With You"  
  
Chapter Eight: A Roll of the Die  
  
Serenity tightened her grip as Yugi's slight frame shuddered, his body wracked with pain he was trying desperately to suppress. Serenity could feel Yami's panic at the back of her mind- and it didn't help that she was panicking herself.  
  
Yugi was trying to say something, but his voice was lost in the magic of the Shadow Realm. Finally, he relaxed, the obvious pain draining slowly away. He whispered something she couldn't hear.  
  
"What?" Serenity asked, tilting her head closer to Yugi's face.  
  
Yugi took a deep breath and shoved himself to his feet. He wavered slightly, but managed to stay standing. "Our," he rasped, voice cracking slightly.  
  
"Our?" Serenity repeated, blinking.  
  
"The word 'our' is the answer to the second clue," Yugi said quietly. "When something belongs to you and to me, it's our object."  
  
"So the middle of the answer is the sound 'our'!" Serenity finished, her mind igniting in a flash of clarity. "Yugi, that's amazing! How'd you get that?"  
  
Yugi shrugged shyly. "I've always been decent at solving puzzles," he said, turning violet eyes to the ground.  
  
//He's always been far better than decent,// corrected Yami. She could detect a definite note of pride in his mental voice. //He solved the Millennium Puzzle, didn't he?//  
  
Serenity stole a glance at the sphinx. She was watching them solemnly, golden eyes showing fascination rather in spite of themselves. There was no hint in her face at all, however, as to whether or not they were on the right track. Serenity looked away. The mysterious creature made her nervous.  
  
"Okay, we've got the middle," Serenity murmured. "The first clue?"  
  
"No idea so far," Yugi murmured back. Both were keeping their voices low, but Serenity had a suspicion that the sphinx could hear every word they were saying. "The front of the front..."  
  
"First of the last? That doesn't make any sense!" Serenity whispered. "How can something that's last be first?"  
  
"And front of the front- if it's in the front, what other front can it have?" Yugi broke off, blinking and shaking his head. "There's something more to it than that... or maybe something less."  
  
"Less?" Serenity looked at Yugi in confusion.  
  
"Maybe we're reading too much into it. Maybe it's actually really simple, but we can't see it because we're confusing ourselves." Yugi shrugged. "I'm not making much sense, am I?"  
  
"I think I get what you're saying," Serenity said uncertainly. "But even still, I can't see what the first of the last would be."  
  
"We can skip that part and come back to it then," Yugi said. "Unless Yami knows...?" he trailed off hopefully.  
  
Serenity sent a question to the Pharaoh. //I'm sorry,// came the reply. //But I have no more idea than you two. I wish I could be of some help, at least...//  
  
\It's okay, Yami. It's not like we're doing any better\. She felt him smile at that, and opened her eyes.  
  
"He doesn't know, either. So you're right- let's go to the next clue." Serenity trained her eyes on the misty golden letters standing out in the blue-black darkness of the world around them.  
  
"Now add the first of the children of night who dance in blue velvet and hide in the light," Yugi read aloud. "What are the children of night?"  
  
"D'you think it means vampires or something?" Serenity asked. "Vampires hide in the light, don't they?"  
  
Yugi was frowning. "No, they hide from the light, not in it," he said softly. "I think the riddle means something more symbolic."  
  
"Then what?" Serenity asked, twirling a lock of chestnut hair around her finger nervously. \If we don't get this... \ she shoved the thought out of her mind savagely. \I can't think like that now! Not when everything is riding on these games. \  
  
Yugi's face was the picture of concentration. Suddenly his eyes lit with a sudden idea. "Serenity, picture blue velvet in your mind. What does it make you think of?"  
  
"Um..." Serenity closed her olive eyes briefly. Then she opened them, comprehension dawning on her own face as well. "The night sky! It's like blue velvet! And the stars 'dance' in the sky!"  
  
"And when it gets light out, they 'hide'- or rather, we can't see them anymore!" finished Yugi triumphantly. "But then, what's the first of stars?"  
  
"Do you think..." Serenity began uncertainly. An idea had just begun to form itself in her mind. "Do you think it means the first letter of the word 'stars'?"  
  
Yugi stared at her for a brief moment. Then, his pale face lit up with a smile. "Of course! That makes perfect sense! Serenity, you're a genius!"  
  
Serenity could feel her face mantling at his praise, and the fact that the sphinx was watching interestedly didn't make her any less embarrassed. She could feel Yami's amusement, also, coming over the link.  
  
\Oh, stop it already.\ Being constantly embarrassed made her want to be disagreeable.  
  
//As you wish, Serenity.// Yami withdrew after allowing himself one more smile. Serenity slammed the link shut, cutting Yami off from her mind. She felt a brief twinge of guilt, but reassured herself that she'd reopen it after not too long.  
  
"Ours... ours..." Yugi tested out the sound. "Let's look at the final answer's clue and see if-" he trailed off. His eyes closed as he quite suddenly crumpled to the ground.  
  
"Yugi!" Serenity dropped to her knees and shook him. "Yugi, talk to me!" She could feel her heart beginning to pound. \Yugi! Wake up! Please! \  
  
Yugi stirred. His violet eyes opened halfway as he sat up shakily. His limbs were trembling badly, and he looked exhausted. With each moment that passed, the shadows beneath his eyes became more pronounced. "Sorry..." he mumbled, putting his head down on his knees for a second and taking in a deep, shaky breath.  
  
"Yugi, don't say you're sorry! It's not your fault..." Serenity felt a rage building inside her like none she'd ever harbored before. "It's not your fault. It's Marik's." she said quietly.  
  
"What?" Yugi looked at her nervously, obviously unused to seeing Serenity so angry.  
  
"It's Marik's!" she exploded suddenly. Yugi's eyes widened; the sphinx merely looked on, taking note of this as calmly as when Yugi had collapsed.  
  
"You hear me, Marik?" she cried out. "You are not going to win! Yugi, Yami and I will make it through your five games! Just you watch and see! Just you watch!"  
  
For a moment, Serenity, in the heat of her anger, thought that she heard something that sent a freezing chill down her spine: a cold, sinister, and inexplicable laughter...  
  
***  
  
Icy lavender eyes watched as the angry girl screamed at the top of her lungs. Marik broke into a low, amused laugh. "Really," he said, drawing out the word. "You obviously have no idea who you're up against, Serenity Wheeler. I give you points for determination, though." He lowered the Millennium Rod; the image before him blurred like water disturbed and then faded away.  
  
"Master Marik."  
  
Marik turned his attention to the Rare Hunter at the foot of his throne. "What if what the girl says is true? What if the pair of them manage to successfully pass the five tests?"  
  
Marik smiled, amused. "Do you honestly think that will happen? The boy Yugi is fading fast- he will be of little help in the challenges ahead. The Pharaoh is trapped within the Puzzle; he must remain there if he is to protect anyone, and his sense of duty won't allow him to do otherwise. But even if, by some odd twist of destiny, they do manage that feat- I have prepared for that as well. Have you forgotten the warning I sent at the start of this little endeavor?"  
  
The Rare Hunter's eyes flashed in cold comprehension. "Of course, Master Marik," he said, bowing. "I see now."  
  
"Very good." Marik pushed the hood of his dark purple robe back from his blonde hair and stood, the golden Millennium item twirling idly in his hand. "I have this all planned out, as you will soon see. This time, the powers of the Pharaoh will be mine. This time-" his eyes flashed with a mad fury. "This time, I shall not fail!"  
  
***  
  
Serenity finished her angry speech and realized she was glaring furiously with tears in her eyes at an empty, dark sky. Letting her head drop, she turned back to Yugi.  
  
"Let's hurry and finish the riddle. We need to get out of here fast," she said, knowing he could tell she was worried. \How can I not be worried? I lo- I like him so much... \  
  
"Okay," Yugi said quietly. He climbed to his feet, refusing to let the pain of doing so show on his face. "Let's look at the last clue, and see if that can get it solved- even without the first third of the answer."  
  
"In colorful frocks they dance on the land only to die by a passerby's hand." Serenity read aloud.  
  
"Now give me your answer  
You must give the name  
Of these much-valued tokens  
In love's fragile game," repeated the sphinx helpfully. Serenity blinked, and Yugi grinned, eyes sparkling.  
  
"Colorful frocks?" Serenity wondered aloud. "Does it mean dresses?"  
  
"Could be, but it might be another symbolic thing," Yugi said, frowning. "'They dance on the land, only to die by a passerby's hand.'"  
  
Serenity felt as though her brain were obscured in some dense fog. For the life of her, she couldn't come up with the answer. \Much-valued tokens in love's fragile game.... \ she shook her head in frustration. Something fell from her hair and landed near her feet.  
  
Serenity picked it up gently, examining it. \It's the blue rose Yugi gave me, \ she realized with a start. \I can't believe it didn't fall out sooner. \ She began to tuck the rose into her hair again, when suddenly she pulled it out and stared at it again.  
  
"Ours... owers..." she repeated aloud. "Much-valued tokens in love's fragile game..." a single thought came to her mind. "Flowers?"  
  
Yugi looked sideways at her, eyes beginning to glow with thought. "Colorful frocks could refer to petals..." he murmured, face alight. "And-" he broke off, eyes lighting up again. "Of course! Front of the front means the first letter in the word 'front'!"  
  
"And first of the last..." Serenity began. "The first letter of the word 'last' is L!"  
  
"Fl-our-s," Yugi sounded out excitedly. "That has to be it! We got it!" When he didn't say anything more, Serenity gave him a questioning glance. "Go ahead," he prodded. "You answer. You solved the main riddle."  
  
"Sphinx," Serenity began. She stopped, feeling nervous. She looked at Yugi, who gave her a smile of encouragement. She could feel a smile spreading on her own face as she turned back to the Egyptian creature. "The answer to your riddle is 'Flowers.'"  
  
For one perilous moment nothing happened. Serenity's mind contained just a single thought: \Did I get it wrong? \  
  
The sphinx smiled, an odd look to see on her imperious face. Amber eyes flashed as she rose to all fours and bowed low before a startled Yugi and Serenity. "Correct," she intoned, musical voice echoing in the empty spaces. "I concede to you, travelers. You may pass." She turned slowly and began to fade away into the darkness. Her amber eyes were the last things to disappear. As they too vanished, a completely unexpected whisper came from the sphinx. "Good luck..."  
  
Out of the darkness flashed a copper glow of luminosity. It was a doorway, appearing quite suddenly out of the nothingness. Serenity suddenly knew quite clearly that if they passed through it they'd find themselves at the fourth game, though how she knew that was a mystery even to her. "Is that...?" she began nervously.  
  
Yugi nodded, answering her unspoken question, and began to take a step toward the door. He wavered, eyes losing focus again, before he shook himself out of near unconsciousness. He couldn't manage to keep himself on his feet, though, and his knees buckled as he fell hard to the ground.  
  
Serenity darted forward and grabbed his shoulders. "Yugi, just take it easy, okay? Lean on me. Yami'll strangle me if you get yourself hurt." She blinked suddenly. Why did those words sound so familiar?  
  
***Flashback***  
  
"Here, lean on me. Joey'll strangle me if you get yourself hurt," Yugi said teasingly, as Serenity tried to stay up on trembling legs.  
  
***End Flashback***  
  
\It's what Yugi said to me the night I got lost, \ she realized suddenly. \Ever since then, he's done so much for me. It's time I started doing something to help him.\ That thought finished, she helped him to pick himself up off the ground. He leaned on her slightly as he tried to get his breath. Finally he straightened up and turned to her. "Thanks," he said softly. "I think I can make it now."  
  
Serenity knew her uncertainty showed on her face. "All right," she said, following close behind him as he passed through the door and into the next room, head held high. He was limping slightly, but the proud flare in his eyes kept Serenity from saying anything at all.  
  
//He does have a proud streak,// came Yami's familiar voice. Serenity could tell just from that statement that the Pharaoh was frantic over Yugi's condition- not from the words themselves, but from Yami's tone of voice.  
  
Serenity was about to reply, when a loud slam caused her to lose her grip on the mind link. The coppery door had slammed shut behind her, giving off a thundering bang that seemed to hang in the air even after the sound had faded. Yugi started as well, wobbling on his feet again. Serenity drew in her breath, ready to catch him if he should fall. Struggling hard, Yugi regained his balance, but sent her a grateful smile of thanks anyway.  
  
Suddenly there was a burst of light. It illuminated two large rectangles, hovering in the air. As the light grew, casting shadows over Yugi and Serenity, the dim pictures slowly came into view. One card was a green- turquoise hue, with a picture of a small pink creature holding a single blue die. On the other, which was a dark shade of pink, a darker, more impish creature hovered, a wide grin on its face, holding a die equal to the first with the one difference being its red color.  
  
"I recognize those...where have I seen them before?" Serenity murmured. When no reply came, she looked at Yugi questioningly.  
  
Yugi shook his head suddenly and glanced at her. "Sorry." he mumbled. His eyes were losing some of their fire. "I didn't hear you."  
  
"It's okay," she reassured him, fighting back the all-too-familiar burst of fear. "Don't worry about it."  
  
"I really am sorry," Yugi told her, voice weak and raspy. "But I'm not sure if I'll be much help in these last games." He forced a smile painfully. "Not too hard to see why." His smile faded, and he lowered his head. "Why do I have to be so weak?" he whispered.  
  
Serenity felt like her heart was tearing in two. "Yugi, you're not weak at all! You're the strongest person I've ever known! You." she sniffled, tears having come up very suddenly. \Yami, do you think he'll listen to you any better? \  
  
//I don't know, but I can try. I just don't understand how he can believe something so obviously false.// The gold flashed in her mind, replicated in the Shadow Realm's dark atmosphere, and the female voice Yami seemed to take on when speaking through her cut through the air.  
  
"Yugi, did you understand nothing I ever said to you?"  
  
Startled, Yugi glanced at Serenity. Yami's presence had made her gaze sharper, her green eyes more piercing.  
  
"Remember what I told you long ago? You have the heart of a champion, and a soul that is brave and true. Why you have such trouble believing that is beyond me." Yami's voice was hard, but beneath it Serenity could detect the Pharaoh's concern for his hikari.  
  
"But Yami, I didn't do anything you couldn't have done just as well!" Yugi said, eyes flashing in self-accusation.  
  
"That's not true either, and you ought to know it. If you can't trust in your own judgment, Yugi, at least trust in that of those around you." With a final flash, Yami was gone. Serenity took control as the spirit retreated into the golden confines of the Puzzle.  
  
Yugi was staring at the ground, lost in thought. Serenity opened her mouth to say something- she wasn't sure what- when suddenly a golden mist came between Yugi and herself. Shooting straight up, it formed the familiar lines of verse:  
  
"Your die is the blue  
My die is the red  
Rolls you'll have two  
You must come out ahead."  
  
These quickly vanished, leaving Serenity staring rather foolishly at an empty sky. "So, all we have to do is roll a higher total than the red die and we win?"  
  
"I guess," Yugi answered. He began to say something more, but was cut off by yet another series of flashing lights; one turquoise, the other pink. He shielded his eyes from the glare as Serenity squinted, trying to make out what was going on.  
  
She gasped as she realized that the creatures on the cards were coming out. \I really shouldn't be surprised by anything anymore, \ she thought wryly, \but this is still unbelievable to me. That these cards can come to life here is so strange. \  
  
The black and silver imp holding the red die let out a cackle, as the pink one drifted down to face Serenity and Yugi. Its black eyes sparked happily as it proudly held out its large blue die.  
  
"For us?" Yugi asked it tentatively, pointing to himself. The little thing nodded, pleased to be understood, its eyes closing in what would have been a smile if it had had a mouth. It held out the die again, the small wings on its hat fluttering rapidly.  
  
Serenity held out her hands, feeling a silly grin spreading over her face. The little creature was so cute! Beaming, it dropped the die into her outstretched arms.  
  
Serenity nearly tipped over. It was a lot heavier than it had looked at first. Yugi put a protective arm behind her, but she managed to keep her feet.  
  
"How does that little tiny thing carry this all the time?" she groaned, hoisting the blue die further up and resting it on her hip.  
  
The little thing chittered- Serenity wasn't sure how it managed that without a mouth- and vanished. Up above her, the imp grinned, flashing pointed teeth.  
  
"Um." Serenity began. "I'm ready whenever you are!" Blinking, she watched as the bearer of the red die whirled in a circle and then flung it sky- high.  
  
It fell to the ground with a loud clunk, landing solidly on the number three.  
  
"Okay," Serenity murmured. " I have to beat three. Here goes nothing!" She lifted the die above her head- and promptly fell backwards, directly into Yugi. They crashed to the ground and the blue die went spinning across the cold earth. She heard it rattle to a stop, but her focus at that point was making sure she hadn't knocked Yugi out.  
  
"Yugi! Are you all right?" Serenity gasped, brushing her hair haphazardly out of her face and sitting up. Yugi groaned softly, pushing himself up to rest on his elbows.  
  
"'S'ok," he managed wearily. "What'd you roll?"  
  
Serenity got to her feet, face bright red, and backtracked in search of the die. "We have a." she spotted something blue in the darkness and rushed over to it.  
  
Her spirits soared. "Houston, we have a six!" she cried out, picking up the die again and carrying it back to Yugi with a grin on her face.  
  
Her grin faded. "Yugi, what's wrong?" He hadn't moved from where she'd left him.  
  
"Serenity." Yugi bit back a gasp of pain. "I don't think I can stand."  
  
Serenity dropped the die, only numbly aware that it landed on her own foot. "Yugi, you're not...not." she couldn't say it.  
  
Yugi shook his head with a smile. "No, I'm not checking out on you yet, Serenity," he said. "Don't worry about me right now."  
  
In a daze, Serenity watched him as he wiped sweat from his forehead. \If this isn't a time to worry, then what is? \ she thought. Suddenly she started as something whizzed by her head. Whipping around, long hair flying, she saw the red die come to a stop on the number four.  
  
\Three and four...all I need is a two or higher and we win the fourth game! \ Serenity lifted the die off her foot. \That is, if I don't screw this up too. \ She lifted it above her head.  
  
.And was immediately plagued with doubt. \What if I mess up? What if I ruin this for Yugi and Yami and myself? What if-\ she closed her eyes and shook her head hard. \Just throw it! \ She did.  
  
The dice spun in the darkness, its blue facets catching what little light there was. Serenity watched, silently praying. \Please, please.\  
  
It stopped. On the number one.  
  
Serenity felt her hope deflate, like a popped balloon. \I lost... I can't believe I lost.\  
  
//No, you didn't. It's a tie.//  
  
Serenity looked again at the numbers. Yami was right.  
  
//This means one final roll to determine the winner,// Yami said wisely.  
  
Serenity swallowed. One final roll?  
  
The little imp obviously didn't have the same qualms she did. It immediately tossed its red die, clapping its little black hands gleefully. The die sailed through the air-  
  
And landed on five.  
  
\Five? Oh, great. Now there's only one way to win- and that's another six. But I doubt I can manage that.\  
  
"Serenity."  
  
Yugi was looking at her with those big violet eyes. "Don't doubt yourself. It's exactly what Marik wants. The more you doubt yourself, the less likely you are to win."  
  
"But what if I really don't think I can do this?" Serenity burst out. "What if I can't do it at all?"  
  
There was a brief silence. Then, somehow- Serenity wasn't sure how- Yugi took a deep breath and staggered to his feet.  
  
"I believe in you," he said, putting a cold, shaking hand over hers on the die and giving her his thousand-watt smile. "Ready?"  
  
Serenity's nervousness vanished. \With Yugi helping me, I'm not afraid anymore. \ "Ready," she replied, eyes sparkling in determination.  
  
"One." Yugi began.  
  
"Two." Serenity continued.  
  
"Three!" The two of them tossed the die through the air. Holding her breath, Serenity watched as it spun. In what seemed to be slow motion, it clattered to the ground, spinning wildly on one corner. As the spinning slowed, Serenity and Yugi were both staring desperately at the die, both praying as hard as they could.  
  
With a final rattle, the die dropped into place.  
  
***  
  
That would be a cliffhanger, right? *dodges random objects thrown at her*  
  
Anyhow, the winner of the Sphinx's riddle contest is...  
  
Pooka228! You were the first one to get the answer right! Congrats! *applause*  
  
So, what would you like? A small role in the fic? A chapter dedication? Let me know!  
  
Until next time, my friends! ^_^ 


	9. Shattered

Hello? Anyone there? *wipes tomato off her hair*  
  
I'm so sorry that this took such a long time. I got a bad grade on a writing assignment... that's what I thought I was good at. I kinda lost the will to write... is my writing that bad?  
  
Enough feeling sorry for myself. Thankies to:  
  
Nightlight5: NO! The eyes... the eyes... *rocking back and forth in a corner* ^_^  
  
Pooka228: This one's got two games... sorta... you'll see what I mean.  
  
DJ Rodriguez: ^_^ I can just see Serenity on a rampage, after Marik... hopefully that won't be necessary, though...  
  
Aeyes: *cries* I'm not evil! I'm not! Mmm... tomatoes...  
  
A Watcher: Fun stuff, indeed.  
  
Sakura30: Yay! Someone who shares my sentiment about wanting to hug little Yugi! ^_^  
  
Scarlett and Scar: The magic only extends to one other person. Plus, the final game isn't the greatest time to be sharing a necklace with someone...  
  
Anime-crazed33: You may get to see a Joey reaction... you may not... *evil grin*  
  
\La dee dah\: Thoughts  
  
//La dee dah//: Yami speaking  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, or you'd see these chapters as episodes on Saturday mornings... ^_^  
  
This chapter is dedicated to Pooka228, for being the first reviewer to solve the riddle of the Sphinx! *applause*  
  
Previously:  
  
"Three!" The two of them tossed the die through the air. Holding her breath, Serenity watched as it spun. In what seemed to be slow motion, it clattered to the ground, spinning wildly on one corner. As the spinning slowed, Serenity and Yugi were both staring desperately at the die, both praying as hard as they could.  
  
With a final rattle, the die dropped into place.  
  
"I'm With You"  
  
Chapter Nine: Shattered  
  
On the number six.  
  
Serenity whooped as a smile spread across Yugi's pale face. "We did it! We won the fourth game!"  
  
"We did do it, didn't we?" Yugi said softly, watching as the dice faded away, the scarlet and cobalt colors merging once again with the monotonous black-purple. "That's four. We only have one more to go, and then we're out of here for good!"  
  
\Out of here for good... \ Serenity felt a grin spreading across her face at the very thought. \I can't wait to get out of this creepy place! And the sooner, the better. \  
  
//Well, then don't simply stand there. Get going.//  
  
Serenity nodded, and simply said, "Yami," in answer to Yugi's questioning glance. His eyes sparkled in comprehension, their normal intense violet hue returning briefly. All too soon, though, the brightness faded from his gaze, to be replaced by the barely-suppressed agony.  
  
Serenity glanced sideways anxiously at Yugi as he began his torturous walk with her to the final game. He looked near collapsing with exhaustion, and he was shaking continuously now, despite his best efforts to suppress it. His golden bangs were limp and matted with sweat against his drawn face, which was pale and cold as marble. If she listened closely, she could hear his ragged breathing.  
  
Serenity could feel the newly awakened anger building again. \He looks so weak... I only hope the last game is one I can handle on my own so he doesn't have to strain himself any further. \ She touched the chain of the Puzzle. A feeling of guilt welled up within her. \If only there was some way I could let him have the Puzzle. But I know firsthand I can't handle this place, so Yugi has to take all the pain for me. \  
  
Serenity trained her eyes on the ground stubbornly as Yugi sensed her watching him and turned to meet her gaze. She could feel her face flushing and wanted to hit herself for it. \This is no time to start blushing like a lovesick airhead! I can't tell Yugi that I lo- like him right now, not with everything that's going on. \ Serenity sighed and let her long hair obscure her eyes for a brief moment. \But I wish that I could... \  
  
//Serenity.//  
  
She glanced up sharply, warned by the tone of Yami's voice. She had learned not to question him when he had a premonition. Yugi, too, seemed to sense that there was something amiss as he darted his violet gaze around the whole of the Shadow Realm.  
  
Serenity pricked up her ears. Her hearing was sensitive, and if she listened closely and held her breath, she could hear not only Yugi's breathing but the sound of others breathing as well. She bit her tongue, firmly squashing the fear blooming in her soul. \This is no time to get scared. We're almost out of here! \  
  
Yugi drew in his breath sharply. Serenity heard the sound too; it was unmistakably the pounding of heavy boots, heading straight in their direction. And then a sound permeated the oppressive stillness that sent a chill down her spine- laughter.  
  
But... Serenity frowned. That was nothing like the laughter of the Illusionist Faceless Mage, nor did it sound like the cackling of the creature on the pink dice card. This sounded... happy. Like a normal girl, giggling over something she found irresistibly funny.  
  
"Yugi?" Serenity whispered.  
  
"Yeah?" Yugi whispered back, keeping his voice low to match hers.  
  
"Who's coming?" she said softly, edging toward him nervously.  
  
"I don't..." Yugi broke off, eyes widening in what seemed to be an awed recognition. Serenity looked where his violet gaze was focused, and felt her own eyes growing wide.  
  
A tall figure came forth from the purple darkness, gold eyes flashing. Pale blonde hair with a hint of green to it hung straight to end just above his broad shoulders, framing a solemn face and pointed ears. Green and silver armor shone dimly in the blackness, and a silvery blade flashed keenly at his waist. As Serenity's mind struggled to rationalize this new arrival, another giggle made her snap her eyes to the left, where they landed on what at first appeared to be a huge clamshell.  
  
\A shell can't laugh... \ suddenly, she caught sight of a second pair of eyes watching them- a deep azure, filled with laughter and a spark of mischief. As her eyes adjusted further to the darkness, she saw the eyes glittered like sapphires in a tan face. Long green hair, tangled with seaweed and what looked like a starfish, fell down her back, veiling but not obscuring the quiver of razor-sharp arrows she wore. A silvery tail glimmered palely in the murky darkness. As she watched them, she let out another amused giggle, covering it politely with her hand.  
  
"She's a mermaid!" Serenity whispered in awe.  
  
"The Red Archery Girl," Yugi murmured. "And the Celtic Guardian. Amazing."  
  
The Elf strode forward, gold eyes holding a measure of concern within the level gaze. "Little master, there is something wrong," came a voice.  
  
Yugi blinked. The look on his face was a mixture of wonder, exhaustion, fright, and plain shock. "You... spoke to me?"  
  
"Well, of course he did," came a second voice. This one was female, impatient and mischievous all at once. The mermaid flipped her long hair over one shoulder as she spoke again. "We can speak here, after all. This is the Shadow Realm."  
  
"Hush! Show respect for him," chided the Celtic Guardian, turning to the mermaid and giving her a heated glare. After an intense staring contest of sorts, the mermaid broke the gaze and looked down, looking rather ashamed.  
  
The Elf turned back to Yugi. "Little master, you do not look at all well. What is wrong?"  
  
Yugi forced a smile and started to speak, but the Shadow Realm chose that exact moment to continue its devastation on his worn soul. As he staggered, an anguished cry escaping his lungs in spite of himself, Serenity steadied him, hands on his shoulders, as tears stung her eyes.  
  
"Do not tell me there is no problem." The Elf's eyes were stern. "I can see plainly you are very weak."  
  
Yugi caught his breath and his eyes flashed indignantly. He looked up, glaring. Serenity barely noticed that she was glaring as well.  
  
"I did not mean it like that," the Guardian assured him, sensing the reason for the pair's anger. "But it is clear the Shadow Realm is harming you. Am I correct in this, at least?"  
  
Yugi's anger seemed to dissolve, and he nodded, casting his eyes on the misty ground.  
  
"We don't have that much time!" interrupted the Archery Girl, glancing nervously over her shoulder. "You know we aren't even supposed to be here!"  
  
The tall Guardian nodded once, to show he heard her, and turned his attention back toward Yugi. "The one who called these games meant for the final one to be unbalanced. The Shadow Realm does not accept this- so it is temporarily overlooking the fact that we were not called to participate in this game. It will not do so for long." He pulled the silver blade from its sheath, turned it quickly, and offered it to Yugi, hilt-first. At the same moment, the Red Archery Girl slipped the quiver of arrows from her back and offered them with her polished longbow.  
  
"What...?" Yugi couldn't seem to find the words to phrase his question.  
  
"You will need weapons in the challenge that is to come. You cannot face it unarmed. Hurry, before our presence is discovered." The Celtic Guardian held the sword out further.  
  
"Unless you want to lose," added the Red Archery Girl impatiently. "Now take our weapons." Her face softened and she smiled at them.  
  
Serenity reached tentatively forward, mirroring the movement of Yugi's trembling hand.  
  
"Serenity, take the bow and arrows."  
  
Startled, she glanced at Yugi. He was looking at her, the full intensity of his violet eyes burning into her. "What?" she said, thinking she must have heard him wrong.  
  
"I said take the bow and arrows. I'll take the Celtic Guardian's sword."  
  
"But Yugi, that thing is-" she began to protest. He silenced her with a look.  
  
"Serenity, whatever this turns out to be, I don't want you anywhere near what it is we're fighting."  
  
"Yugi, I-" Serenity could feel herself growing angry again.  
  
"Serenity, please." He looked at her pleadingly, and she felt her anger dissolve as swiftly as it had come. "I know you're mad at me, but I can't let you into any more danger than I already have. If you hadn't been near me, you wouldn't even be here. I just can't risk putting you in even more danger after everything else I've messed up." The Celtic Guardian and the Red Archery Girl watched the exchange intensely, eyes flickering from speaker to speaker.  
  
Serenity's eyes prickled. "Yugi, I don't want you to get hurt either..."  
  
Yugi sighed. "Serenity, it makes sense for us to do it this way. After all, I'm not the one who won a trophy in archery at summer camp." He gave her a smile that made her face flush brightly as a cherry.  
  
"How did you know about that?" she asked, putting her hands on her face and looking at the ground. When he didn't answer, Serenity looked up in time to see Yugi look fixedly at his feet, his own face pink.  
  
"Joey told me," he mumbled, looking uncomfortable. "Now, are we ready? I don't know about you, but I'd like to get out of here as fast as possible."  
  
Serenity nodded, reaching out and taking the longbow and quiver. "Thank you," she stammered, and the mermaid winked and tossed her long green hair.  
  
Yugi reached out and took the longsword, slim hands closing over the hilt. From the sudden change in his face, it was just as heavy as it appeared, if not more so. The Celtic Guardian released the tip of the well- polished blade haltingly, and Yugi took a staggering step forward with the new weight. The entire sword was trembling as Yugi fought to hold the blade steady. Finally he let the tip drop to the hard ground, hands still clutching the hilt in a death grip. "Thank- you-" he managed, trying to speak normally. His voice was too weak and raspy, though, and the words barely came at all. The Celtic Guardian nodded silently, worry clearly etched on his Elven features. "We had best leave, before the Shadow Realm becomes disturbed by our presence."  
  
"Wait! How will we give your weapons back?" Serenity shouted as the two Duel Monsters began to fade into the shadows.  
  
"Don't worry. They will find us when you no longer need them. Good luck, both of you." The Celtic Guardian and the Red Archery Girl winked out of sight. They were gone.  
  
Yugi took a deep breath and strained to raise the sword again. Sweat ran down his white face as his slight frame trembled. Slowly the blade lifted into the air. The silver flashed as light played over the weapon. Yugi's ragged breath caught in his throat with the effort of keeping the longsword aloft.  
  
//He can't handle this,// Yami forced out, once-confident voice shaking. //He's barely holding on as it is.//  
  
\Don't say that, Yami! \ Serenity couldn't listen to his words, or she knew she'd burst into tears. \Just don't. Please. \  
  
//I'm sorry. You're right, Serenity. I shouldn't think like that.// Yami withdrew, but not before a painful wave of fear crashed over their link. Serenity wasn't sure if she had sent it to Yami, or if it was the other way around.  
  
"Here it comes." Yugi's hoarse voice broke the heavy silence. Serenity looked to where he was focusing, and could make out the winking of the familiar mist swirling toward them. As it dipped in the air, almost seeming to dance, it formed the customary poem:  
  
"Your opponent will be fast  
You must succeed in being faster  
Now end the challenge last  
By defeating the blade master"  
  
"I don't like the sound of that," Yugi murmured. A loud thump behind him made him snap his head around, nearly knocking him off his feet.  
  
Serenity turned frantically, green eyes searching desperately for the source of the noise.  
  
"Serenity, get back." She was about to protest, when she saw the look on Yugi's face. "Get back now. Whatever we have to fight is coming."  
  
Serenity moved slightly, but she had no intention of backing off as far as she knew Yugi meant for her to do. She met Yugi's eyes squarely as he glanced at her, not backing down an inch. Finally he gave her one of his sunny smiles and turned back, holding the longsword as steady in the air as he could.  
  
Serenity's heart was pounding and her mouth was dry as paper. She felt for an arrow and pulled the first one she found from the quiver. \Okay, let's see if I remember how to do this. \ Her thoughts were cut off, however, by the sudden ringing sound of metal clashing. She darted her eyes up and froze.  
  
Yugi was shuddering in his place, clinging to his sword for dear life. His blade was locked with a second, long and made of metal with a blue sheen. The owner of the blue sword was still hidden within the shadows, but Serenity could see he was twice Yugi's size, if not more, and was slowly forcing the blades closer and closer to Yugi's chest.  
  
\Oh my... \ Serenity felt her hands moving, setting the arrow to the string of the longbow mechanically. She raised it and squinted, aiming at the mysterious figure's arm. She let the arrow fly through the air, watching with bated breath.  
  
It hit with a loud clank and dropped, useless, to the ground. As she watched it with the unwilling disbelief of despair, it dissipated. The arrow had done one thing, though- it gave Yugi an opportunity to break the locked blades and move out of the way as the blade smashed itself into the cold ground.  
  
Their enemy stalked forward out of the darkness. Serenity, who had reached her limit for being surprised that day, analyzed him at a glance.  
  
He was indeed close to double Yugi's height and three times as wide as the slim boy. He was covered in armor, from his green helmet to the heavy black boots he wore. Where he was not wearing the peculiar green- white armor, chainmail the same color as his sword flashed in the non- light.  
  
//Masaki, the Legendary Swordsman,// Yami said tonelessly. Serenity suspected to keep himself from losing control of his worry he was attempting to shut off all emotion. //A veteran of more than one hundred battles.//  
  
\Can my arrows do anything at all? \ Serenity grabbed another one from the quiver and fired as the warrior continued to walk forward. It glanced harmlessly off his armored shoulder and fell to the floor, where it too vanished.  
  
The warrior appeared not to notice the arrow. Instead he came up to Yugi, who was glaring as defiantly as he could, muscles trembling as he kept the sword aloft, clutching it in two hands. Emotionlessly he paused, and then, without warning, brought his blade down in a sweeping arc. Serenity screamed as it whistled through the air.  
  
With a loud clang, sparks flew as steel met silver. Yugi had managed to bring his own sword up in time, stopping the strike. Serenity let out a silent cheer.  
  
It made no difference. Masaki fluidly disengaged his sword and brought it slicing around again, aiming to land a strike somewhere else. Again, Yugi somehow found the strength to counter the blow, metal striking metal in a musical clash. Sparks lent his face glowing embers of color that it did not otherwise have. A sharp gasp of pain escaped his lungs as exhausted muscles strained to hold the blade steady.  
  
Serenity fired another arrow, then a second, then a third. Each did no good, hitting the swordsman's heavy armor as harmlessly as if it had been nothing more than a slow-flying insect on a hot summer day.  
  
Her hands were shaking so badly now that the fourth shot went horribly off-target, nearly striking Yugi in the shoulder. It breezed by, and Serenity let out a sigh of profound relief that she had missed. \I've got only one arrow left! And the way I'm shooting right now... \  
  
Again and again, Masaki the Legendary Swordsman brought down crushing strikes, only to have Yugi desperately block him at the last possible moment. Each time, the blue steel was coming closer and closer to meeting its target. Yugi's entire body was shaking with horrible tremors, and his face was a mask of anguish. He gasped in another breath as, for what seemed the hundredth time, the swordsman drew back his attempted strike and aimed again.  
  
Yugi swung his sword in a silver arc, meeting the blue steel just in time. The metal grated on his blade, producing a horrible shrieking noise. Yugi winced visibly at the screech.  
  
It proved to be a dangerous mistake. His concentration slipped, and so did the borrowed sword, the glossy silver sliding off to the side. The tip fell heavily to the ground, taking Yugi down to one knee with it. He struggled to drag himself back to his feet, trying to force his long- exhausted body to do what he commanded. "Please..." he gasped out, the words slipping out inadvertently. "It hurts... help me... it hurts so bad..."  
  
Serenity was sobbing, tears coursing in rivers down her face. The Puzzle around her neck was white-hot, and she could feel Yami's terror and fury at being helpless. "Yugi!" she screamed out, as the blue blade came flying down.  
  
Yugi abandoned the Celtic Guardian's blade, letting it fall to the ground. He threw himself into a desperate somersault, avoiding the strike by mere inches. The swordsman paused, trying to adjust to the new development and giving Yugi valuable seconds to recover.  
  
Serenity watched, spellbound with horror. Yugi was using his small frame as an advantage, managing to avoid the sword and keeping his opponent spinning. \But he can't avoid him forever! \  
  
Yugi cried out suddenly. His leg had crumpled beneath him, bringing him to the ground hard. When Serenity looked, she could see blood from the Darkworld Thorns' attack soaking the left leg of his uniform pants.  
  
Time seemed to freeze. \Yami! I need your help to-\ She felt him read her thoughts and agree instantly. She yanked the arrow desperately from the quiver and pulled back the string as hard as she could. \Help me aim, Yami! Please! \ She felt the unfamiliar tingle of magic as she let the arrow fly, praying she had done this right.  
  
With a loud clank, the arrow struck the side of Masaki's helmet. The sheer force turned the protective armor around one hundred eighty degrees, the thick metal covering the swordsman's face. He let out a muffled sound as he fought to fix the helmet.  
  
"Yugi!" screamed Yami in Serenity's voice. "Pick up your sword!"  
  
Yugi staggered to his feet. He was wobbling badly, unable to put weight on his left leg any longer. Grabbing the hilt of the Celtic blade, he swung it up and around, hitting Masaki's armored legs with the flat of the blade. The swordsman grunted as he lost his balance and fell to the ground in a clatter of plate armor. Lunging forward, Yugi pointed the sword's tip at the Legendary Swordsman. He froze, watching the trembling blade in front of him.  
  
"I don't... want... to hurt... you..." Yugi whispered in a cracked voice. "Surrender?"  
  
For a long moment, there was stillness; then, the Warrior slowly bowed his head in deference to the two of them. He clambered to his feet, bowed once more, and walked away without saying anything at all.  
  
"We... we did it?" Serenity's whisper was disbelieving. "We actually did it?"  
  
Yugi took a stumbling step. The point of the sword dug into the ground, and Yugi clung to the hilt as a means of keeping himself upright. He stood in a perilous balance, his only means of support the heavy blade in the ground. Serenity started suddenly as the bow in her hands vanished in a rain of golden glitter, twinkling into nothingness. Realizing what this meant, Serenity looked to Yugi, hoping the sword would remain there long enough for her friend to regain his feet. For a moment, this weapon, too, flickered; then it vanished as well. Yugi immediately collapsed, crumpling to the foggy ground.  
  
"Yugi!" Serenity darted over, her joy at winning the fifth game marred by Yugi's condition. Gently she tried to help him up, kneeling beside his battered form.  
  
His entire body was cold as ice. She suppressed a shiver at the temperature as she cradled his shoulders, trying to help him sit up. His body was limp in her arms, his eyes closed.  
  
//Oh my Ra... Yugi... oh Ra, no...// Yami's voice sounded broken and forced, as if he were barely holding back tears.  
  
"Yugi!" She shook him desperately. His body was a deadweight in her arms. "No. No. You can't be gone now. We've won, Yugi, we've won! You're not- you can't-" She sniffled, not bothering to wipe her tears away as she bent over his body and cried. Suddenly she felt an icy touch on her face brush a tear away.  
  
"I'm... okay... I'm still... here..." Yugi whispered, giving her a weak smile. She had to strain to hear, his words stolen by pain and exhaustion. "We... won?... All... five?"  
  
"Yes!" Serenity said, trying to smile through her tears. "Yes, we win! We get to leave! You have to promise me to hold on a little longer, Yugi. We'll get you out of here."  
  
Yugi forced another smile. Her heart twisted to see the pain barely masked by his sweet face. "I promise..." he managed, trying to sit up. He tried to say something more, but he was so weak he could no longer make the words come. His eyes glittered sharply as he depleted what little strength he had left with his efforts.  
  
"Don't try to talk any more," Serenity whispered frantically. "Just save your energy, okay? All we need to do is find the portal and we'll be out of here."  
  
Suddenly a low laugh penetrated the blackness. Serenity looked around her wildly, searching for the source of the laughter. A cold chill swept through her as she saw the all-too-familiar mist sweeping up from the depths of the nothingness. It formed itself agonizingly slowly into words as Serenity knelt, arm still around Yugi's shoulders.  
  
"Congratulations, weary ones.  
You've made it to the end.  
Before you step into the sun  
This message do I send.  
  
"The challenges you've made it through  
With wit and foolish heart  
But now I must remind you  
Of the message from the start."  
  
"Message? What message?" Serenity whispered, a frozen dread blooming in the depths of her mind. Yugi shook his head, indicating he didn't remember either. More mist followed these words, and they continued to read, both mouthing the poem soundlessly.  
  
"The first instructions that I sent  
Said just five games exist  
That may be true, but too I said  
The choices number six."  
  
"We have another decision to make?" Serenity whispered. She glanced sideways at Yugi. It was plain he couldn't hold out much longer in the Shadow Realm. \It better not take too long... we have to get Yugi out of here fast! \  
  
"Decision six must now be made  
Though challenges were five  
Your portal has begun to fade;  
Two souls can leave alive."  
  
Serenity felt her stomach drop. \Two souls? No. This isn't possible. There are three of us. Does that mean we...? \ She felt the numbness of disbelief course over her as the poem concluded itself, its words cutting into her mind.  
  
"Those who go free must number two  
Though there are travelers three;  
Who stays behind is up to you...  
Their fate is up to me."  
  
//Marik...// she heard Yami growl in her head. Bitter, white-hot fury shook in every syllable he spoke. Suddenly she felt him seize control in a blind rage. "Curse you, Marik! You and your cowardly, twisted games! Curse you to eternal torment!" The words sounded alien coming from Serenity's mouth, but in the shock of her disbelief, she dimly realized that they were something like what had been running through her mind.  
  
"What do we do now?" Serenity whispered softly. Everything they had worked so hard for... everything they had come through... and now one of them couldn't even leave?  
"Serenity, take Yami and get out of here."  
  
Startled, Serenity stared at Yugi. He was on his knees by this time, large violet eyes focused on the words hovering above them.  
  
"What are you saying?" She prayed she'd heard him wrong.  
  
"I'll... be the one to stay. Take the Puzzle and leave, before the exit fades completely..." Yugi broke off, struggling to draw another breath.  
  
"Are you insane?" Yami broke in. "Yugi, I forbid you from staying behind!"  
  
"It's my decision..." Yugi's eyes were filled with tears, but his voice was steady.  
  
"You can't!" Serenity cried, tears streaming from her eyes. "You and Yami have to save the world, right? You need to be the ones to return!"  
  
"No..." Yugi shook his head gently. "Yami has to save the world. Don't you see? If you don't return, Yami, the whole world is doomed. And Serenity..." he raised his violet eyes to her green ones, holding her gaze. "I made you a promise, remember? I said that I wouldn't let anything hurt you as long as I was alive. It's time for me to keep that promise."  
  
"I can't leave you here!" Serenity cried out, no longer caring that tears were streaming down her face in torrents. "Yugi, I can't!"  
  
"I'm... sorry..." Yugi drew in a shuddering breath. "But... you have to... or all of us... are done for..." The fear was evident on his face- he looked terrified, but resolute.  
  
//Oh, no, no. Serenity, listen to me. I want you to take off this Puzzle and throw it as far as you can. Smash it, drop it, I don't care- anything. I don't care what you have to do to get my hikari to come with you. Knock him out, if necessary... but I cannot leave him here!// She could tell Yami was crying too, his powerful voice trembling and cracking with emotion.  
  
"Serenity... please... look after... the Puzzle..." Yugi broke off, eyes widening. "Marik's... coming..."  
  
Serenity was shaking her head, even as she backed away. "Yugi... please don't..."  
  
//Serenity! Stop!//  
  
\I can't! Yugi's using some sort of magic or something! \ She couldn't stop her traitorous legs' journey toward the humming vortex that crackled and made her hair stand on end.  
  
//He's tapping into the powers the Realm grants him as a hikari!//  
  
"Yugi! No! You can't stay here! Because I... because I lo-" Serenity's words were cut short by the blinding flash of light. Her last sight was Yugi's beautiful violet eyes, full of terror and relief and pain all at once. Then the Shadow Realm was gone and she knew nothing more.  
  
Yugi watched the portal crackle and vanish, all his hopes of escape disappeared with it. \But Yami and Serenity are safe, and that's what counts, \ he told himself, turning painfully to face the second portal that had suddenly made an appearance among the dark lightning. With a flash, Marik appeared. Yugi glared defiantly as his enemy materialized.  
  
"Well, Pharaoh. It looks like-" Marik broke off in disbelief, slowly building up to rage. "Little Yugi? What in Ra's name are you doing here?"  
  
"You sent me here, remember?" Yugi spat, knowing each word was costing him far more strength than he had to give. \But it doesn't matter anymore. \  
  
"The Pharaoh was supposed to be the one to stay behind! He would never abandon his duties as your 'protector'!"  
  
"I figured your game, Marik. Yami's long gone. You've lost again, haven't you? Yami is safe, so is Serenity, and that's what counts." Yugi clutched his head, willing the overwhelming dizziness to go away. \It hurts... \  
  
"You pathetic mortal!" Marik was livid with rage. He backhanded Yugi across the face, sending the small teen to his knees again. "How dare you ruin my plans! All my work, for nothing?" He clutched his pale golden hair and let out a furious scream of pure anger. Yugi watched, only half- conscious. Marik spun to face him again, tapping the Millennium Rod against his palm thoughtfully.  
  
"Well, you worthless fool, you may have foiled my plan, but I still have you. I wasn't lying when I said your fate would be up to me. And because of what you have done..." Marik let a sinister, cruel grin spread across his face. "I am going to leave you here. Let the Shadow Realm do what it would with you. And don't worry- I will get the Pharaoh. You may be sure of that!" Marik stalked into the portal and vanished with a clap of thunder that rattled the entire Shadow Realm.  
  
Yugi tried to push himself to his feet again, but his knees buckled and he collapsed, frail body trembling. Pain knifed through his heart, his mind, his soul. He felt his eyes close softly. \I can't... it hurts too much... I can't...\ His tense muscles went limp as he fell into an unconsciousness blacker than the Shadow Realm itself.  
  
***  
  
*cringes away from Aeyes and Nightlight5*  
  
You two are gonna kill me for this one. But... *brightens* If you kill me, you'll never find out the ending!  
  
Please review! You guys are the best! Pwease? *uses Yugi's puppy eyes*  
  
Buh-bye now! ^_^ 


	10. A Single Thread

*crying*  
  
You guys don't really hate me... do you? *sniffles*  
  
I really hope not, but everyone's been telling me how evil I was. I didn't mean to be evil! *lower lip trembles*  
  
Well, anyways... thanks to all you peoples out there:  
  
A Watcher: Ren, huh? Cute name. And you're close on one of the two guesses- I won't say which. ^_^  
  
DJ Rodriguez: Thank you for not attacking me! *sniffles* Yes, that's what I believe Yugi would do. I love how selfless he is!  
  
Sakura30: I know. I could hardly believe what I wrote...  
  
Dreamy-eyes1: Yup, I've got Chemistry. I have not, however, made the mistake Serenity made. ^_^ And, as you know by now, that was the riddle's answer. Good going! Happy ending? Well, you'll know by the end of this chapter.  
  
Anime-crazed33: New chapter is here! I wrote this one as fast as I could!  
  
Capito Celcior: Thankies for the review! More is here!  
  
starfire: You asked for it!  
  
rox: Thanks! *blushes* I agree, Marik is quite a baka in this fiction.  
  
Scarlett and Scar: *sniffles* I don't want everyone to call me evil! Thanks for the review, though.  
  
Tk Macintosh: Here's more for ya!  
  
Pooka228: Thanks for the encouragement. I hope you're right about my writing ability. =^_^=  
  
Bluemoon: Ooo! Yugi and Kuriboh! Two kawaii little guys! Aww... *melts*  
  
Halacanno: Thanks so much for adding my story to your favorites! And Yami... I feel your pain. Don't worry, she can't kill you now. I continued, see?  
  
Nightlight5: *giggles* Your review made me smile... "poke her and see if she's okay." ^_^ Here you are! Update!  
  
Queen of the Sea: Thanks for joining my happy little band of reviewers! And thanks for the compliments as well!  
  
Kouji Tenrai: Thank you for adding me to your Favorites list. As for my word choice, could you give me an example or two? I'm always looking to improve my writing!  
  
me: Thank you soooo much! Short as it was, your review still made my day.  
  
Red Roses2: *cringes* Why is everyone yelling at me? I'm sorry! Don't hate me, please?  
  
\Private thoughts\  
  
//Yami speaking//  
  
**Other thoughts**  
  
Disclaimer: As much as I hate to admit it... Yu-Gi-Oh is in no way, shape, or form mine, nor do I ever expect it will be mine. But hey, I can dream, right? *gets starry-eyed* All... mine...  
  
Dedicated to Pooka228, riddle-solver extraordinaire. ^_^  
  
"I'm With You"  
  
Chapter Ten: A Single Thread  
  
An incessant beeping noise cut through the fog of sleep surrounding Serenity. \Make it stop... I just want to sleep. \ It continued, though, almost as if it were mocking her thoughts. She growled and opened her eyes, squinting as a glaringly white room swam into view.  
  
"Serenity?"  
  
She blinked and looked up. "Joey!" she squealed excitedly. "Joey, where am I? What's going on?" This room she was in... it looked uncomfortably like...  
  
... a hospital room.  
  
The memories came rushing back in a cold flood. The portal, the games, and Yugi's final, brave smile before she had vanished and inexplicably found herself here. Her smile faded, immediately extinguished. She took a look at her brother. He looked tired and relieved, but under his carefully manufactured expression she could see a terrible fear.  
  
"Serenity? You're awake!" That voice could only belong to Tristan. Goodness knows she'd heard it often enough when she was in the hospital before.  
  
Serenity looked around silently. Téa, Bakura, Mai, and Dana were all watching her as well. They all looked as if they'd endured a sleepless night, and all had expressions of the greatest worry on their faces.  
  
"Joey? Where's Yugi?" Joey lowered his eyes suddenly, all happiness fading from his face. His sudden change in expression only served to increase her terror. "Joey? Where is he? Tell me now! Where's Yugi?"  
  
Téa let out a whimper as she hid her face in her hands. Bakura bit his lip and turned away, head bowed, but not before she caught a glimpse of the tears in his dark eyes.  
  
"Tell me, someone!" Her voice rose higher and higher as she sat straight up in bed. "Where is Yugi?" Her jade-green eyes begged for someone to tell her that her fears weren't true, that she was overreacting. \Please, someone, tell me he's okay! \  
  
Joey sighed and finally met her eyes again. She was shocked to see her older brother was crying. Slowly he pointed over to a bed she hadn't seen before. Serenity looked tremblingly to where he indicated.  
  
She felt as if someone had dumped a bucket of ice water over her head. Yugi was lying still as death in the white hospital bed next to hers. He looked, if possible, even worse off than he had in the Shadow Realm. His face, long ago drained of all color, had faded to ashen, leaving him as white as the sheets of his bed. The shadows beneath his eyes were huge dark, black rings, a startling contrast to his pale face. His breathing was shallow and forced; every breath he managed to gasp in rattled in his chest. His golden bangs were limp around his face, and matted with the cold sweat that covered his skin. The half-dozen monitors around the bed made him look small and fragile in comparison. Serenity's eyes opened wide in horror.  
  
"He's not... he isn't..." She couldn't manage to finish the sentence. In answer, Joey shook his head.  
  
"He's holdin' on. But none a' the doctors know what's happening to him. He's only getting' worse..." Joey trailed off, too choked up to speak.  
  
Serenity was shaking her head, staring helplessly at Yugi's still form. \This can't be happening... Oh, please let this be a dream. Please. Let me wake up now, and Joey will tell me I'm late for school, and Yugi will be okay. \ A sudden thought hit her like lightning. \Maybe Yami can sense him! Maybe he made it through the portal after us and he's going to wake up soon! \ "Where's the Millennium Puzzle?" she blurted out.  
  
Tristan gave her a quizzical look. "You mean Yugi's Puzzle?"  
  
"Yes! I need to talk to Yami! Where's the Puzzle?" Serenity said rapidly, tripping over her own words.  
  
Dana turned to the window ledge and brought the Millennium Puzzle out from behind the curtains. "This, you mean?" she asked, showing it to her friend. When Serenity nodded, Dana looked to the others. Joey only shrugged, so Dana handed the golden item to Serenity.  
  
Serenity pulled the chain over her head. Immediately a loud voice blasted in her mind, causing her to shut her eyes in pain and clap her hands over her ears in a vain attempt to block the shouting. //Yugi! I swear, if you ever try something like that again-//  
  
\Yami? \  
  
Yami ceased his shouting immediately. //Serenity?// he said uncertainly. //Is that you? Why are you wearing the Millennium Puzzle? Where is my hikari?//  
  
Serenity's heart dropped. \You mean... you mean you can't sense him? \  
  
//No. Where's Yugi? Why can't I feel his mind's presence?// The Puzzle gave off a brilliant flash of gold-tinted light, and an ethereal Yami appeared, standing between the two beds. Serenity started; Yami appeared not to notice. He was casting his eyes frantically around the room. Suddenly they landed on Yugi. Serenity watched as the spirit seemed to freeze where he stood, staring in shock.  
  
//What... happened...?// The Pharaoh's voice sent a shiver down Serenity's spine. It was cold, lifeless, and dead.  
  
\Yugi... he got left behind, didn't he? He didn't make it out. \ Serenity barely realized she was crying hard, barely noticed anything else.  
  
Yami hadn't moved since his last dull inquiry. Suddenly, he whirled and with a startling speed, slammed his fist into the wall. It made no sound, his ghostlike hand going straight through the plaster. He rested his forehead on the wall, tears streaming from his closed eyes.  
  
//I failed him... I promised I'd protect him, and what do I do? Leave him in the Ra-accursed SHADOW REALM!// Yami sank to his knees, forehead still pressed to the white wall.  
  
"Serenity?" Dana's far-off voice brought her back to her senses. The redhead was looking nervously at her. "Are you okay? You were staring into space..."  
  
Serenity shot another look at Yami. He was there still, his purple eyes wide and unblinking as he stared at the ground, motionless but for his shaking shoulders. \They can't see Yami... \ "I'm fine," she whispered. "But Yugi's not, and it's all my fault."  
  
"You mean you know what happened?" Bakura broke in, voice hesitant as if he was afraid to hear the answer.  
  
"Marik brought us to the Shadow Realm... We had to play games. Yugi let me wear the Puzzle to protect me... he was getting weaker... and then Marik sent a message saying only two could leave. Yugi forced Yami and me to go through the portal. He sacrificed himself for me!" Serenity burst into sobs, burying her face in her knees. She had never hurt so much in her life.  
  
Téa, Bakura, Joey, Tristan, and even Dana, who barely knew Yugi but for Serenity's stories, were all crying by this time too. "You mean... it's too late?" Téa whispered, shaking her head slowly in profound horror.  
  
"Oh Serenity... I'm so sorry," Dana whispered. She cast her hazel eyes to the ground.  
  
Tristan was obviously trying not to cry, but from the tears that sparkled in his eyes, it wasn't working too well. Bakura had collapsed into a chair, head in hands, his shoulders shaking with silent sobs.  
  
Joey sat on the bed, next to his distraught sister. He put his arm around her shoulders. He didn't say anything. No one did. They simply sat in the room and helped each other cry.  
  
***  
  
Cold...  
  
Pain...  
  
Exhaustion...  
  
He stumbled forward, his legs trembling with the effort. He didn't know where he was going. He didn't know where he was. He didn't know anything anymore.  
  
His legs gave out for the final time. He collapsed to the frozen ground, knowing that there was no way he could force himself on any longer. But it didn't matter anymore... nothing mattered anymore.  
  
Except the pain.  
  
He no longer knew who he was- if he had ever been anyone before. It seemed as if he had always dwelt in this place, this place of shadow and darkness and pain. Maybe he had. Maybe he hadn't. He was sure of nothing. Nothing. He was nothing.  
  
He buried his face in his knees, his slight frame shaking horribly. He trembled with the torment of the icy grip of the magic as it sank its lethal fangs into his soul.  
  
"Make it stop... anyone..."  
  
The words sounded so out of place in this silent realm. Besides, there was no one to hear him. Was there anyone else at all? He didn't know.  
  
He drew in a deep breath, or tried to. It caught in his throat. He coughed hard, trying to gasp in enough air to keep him alive.  
  
He didn't know why he cared. It would be so much easier to close his eyes and just sleep. There would be no more pain, no more torment, no more endlessly wandering alone. It would be easier.  
  
But he didn't want to die.  
  
He wasn't sure why, exactly. It hurt so badly. Everything hurt. He was the only one there; there was no one to help him. But he had an overwhelming feeling that he didn't want to leave forever, didn't want to give up just yet. Maybe, if he had once had a name, had once lived outside this black place, his mind was telling him that he had a life to return to.  
  
He wanted to go back to the life he hoped he had once had.  
  
But what if he had always been here, a nameless shade stumbling through the shadows? It seemed as likely or more so than the other option.  
  
But still.  
  
What if?  
  
He smiled weakly through the pain, and clung to the one thing that he did have.  
  
Hope.  
  
***  
  
Serenity shifted slightly, not taking her eyes off of Yugi's frail form in the bed. The room would have been pitch-black, had Dana not thought to switch on a lamp. It had to be close to midnight, but no one in the room was sleeping.  
  
The doctors had come in a while back, and gave Serenity a clean bill of health. They still didn't know what had happened to her, or what was happening to Yugi. It was clear, though, that they were losing hope of him coming out of it alive.  
  
They had told the group that visiting hours were up. When they saw the worry in their eyes, however, the doctors had relented. All six were still sitting in a silent vigil beside Yugi's bed.  
  
\All seven, \ she amended her thoughts. Yami was still there, still frozen in the same position that he had assumed hours before. His eyes were wide and filled with anguish, seeing things only he could see.  
  
Serenity directed her eyes again at Yugi. He was no longer struggling for breath. Instead, he was breathing so shallowly that it was nearly imperceptible. It was as if he no longer had the strength to gasp in air.  
  
\I have to believe Yugi can make it, \ Serenity told herself. \Otherwise, I don't know what I'll do. He is going to make it. He has to. \  
  
Only the slow bleeping of the heart monitor broke the soft drone of the other machines. Over and over, the soft sound that meant Yugi was still alive shattered the stillness. It had slowed down since she had woken up, but she refused to think of what that could mean.  
  
*Beep...* Serenity drew in her breath, waiting for the next sound. She held in her air, until another beat of his heart caused her to let it out in relief. *Beep.* Then the whole process began again. The monitor became a ritual for her. Hold breath, sound, let it out, hold breath, sound, let it out.  
  
Until the next beat didn't come.  
  
At first she thought there had to be some mistake. \No. This can't be happening. \ Suddenly, one long, monotone beep shattered her senses. The heart monitor showed nothing but a single straight line.  
  
Serenity screamed. Joey's eyes were full of a terrible fear as he leapt up and slammed on the panel to call the doctors to the room. "Yugi flat-lined!" he shouted wildly into the intercom. Dana's eyes had gone wide with horror. Téa began to sob loudly, as Bakura shook his head back and forth. "No, no, no," he repeated over and over. Tristan looked paralyzed with shock.  
  
Yami snapped his head up, the first movement he had made in a long time. His eyes glittered with absolute terror. //No! Please, don't take him from me!// The Pharaoh, for the first time in his memory, was powerless.  
  
"YUGI! DON'T!" Serenity screamed, without any clear idea of what she was saying.  
  
***  
  
He gasped with the raw agony. The fire of the pain seared into his mind.  
  
He looked at his hand. It was fading into the darkness, becoming nothing more than a part of the shadows. \I'm dying... \  
  
Suddenly a blast of light appeared in front of him. It was the first thing to shatter the dark monotony in all the time he'd spent here. He watched, intrigued, almost forgetting about the pain and how he was fading away.  
  
A single thread of light detached itself from the pulsing brightness. It wrapped itself around his left wrist, coiling slowly up his arm. As it did so, he could clearly hear a voice, coming from nowhere and everywhere.  
  
**"No! Yugi, you can't leave us! We need you! Please, come back to us!"**  
  
The voice was a girl's, terrified and shaking. For a brief instant, a flash of a blue-eyed girl came to his mind. \Do I know her? \ Then, just as suddenly, she was gone.  
  
A second thread separated itself and wrapped gently around his other arm. As it did so, he heard a second voice, and it suddenly became a little easier to breathe. **"Yugi, you can't die. You just can't. You've got too much to live for, too many people who need you. Like us. Please."** The speaker was male this time. \Who is Yugi? Is it... me? \  
  
A third streak of light wrapped itself around his left ankle. No words came with this one, just a sudden flash of a redheaded girl with horrified eyes.  
  
Then, a fourth. **"Oh, Yugi, this is all my fault. How could I have let the spirit of the Ring take over like that? If I hadn't, Marik would never have been able to do this to you. I'm so sorry. Please..."** A soft British accent and a voice full of self-blame.  
  
\Marik? It sounds so familiar... have I truly existed outside of this place? \  
  
**"Yuge, we've been friends for a long time, and I hope you know how much your friendship means to me. You're my best friend, Yuge! Please! Pull through! I know you can do it- you've never let anything beat you before!"**  
  
Breathing was getting easier; the pain was lessening. "Joey..." he breathed once. A picture of a blonde boy with impish brown eyes flashed into his thoughts. "He calls me 'Yuge...'"  
  
**"Oh Ra, Yugi, I've failed you. I swore I'd watch over you, and now look what I've done. I'll never forgive myself for this... never."**  
  
"And he's my... my... yami?"  
  
**"Yugi..."**  
  
Another girl's voice, younger than the others. **"Yugi, don't you die on me. Not after all you've come through! You sacrificed yourself for me! Please, Yugi! Breathe! This can't be happening."**  
  
"Serenity..." he breathed. He knew that voice! He knew her!  
  
The Shadow Realm was not willing to give up its prize easily. The light twisted around his body, trying desperately to pull him away and back to where he belonged. The Shadow fought back, drawing him further and further within.  
  
***  
  
"NO!" Serenity screamed out. "YUGI! YOU CAN'T DIE!" She was half- hysterical, words coming between great gulping sobs.  
  
\YOU CAN'T DIE! You can't! Because... \  
  
\Because I love you! \  
  
***  
  
**"Because I love you... because I love you..."**  
  
The words echoed in the Shadow Realm, a brilliant stream of light following after. From the grip of the darkness he watched, only half- conscious. It wrapped itself around him, hovering protectively over his body. He could feel the gentle tug of that single thread of brightness. It was pulling him away, bringing him out of this place.  
  
**"Because I love you."**  
  
***  
  
Serenity choked on a sob and listened, praying what she thought she'd heard was real, and not a desperate trick of her mind. Téa was holding her breath, biting back her tears, and Joey had frozen, fist midway to the "Call" button again.  
  
Then, soft and wonderful...  
  
*Beep. Beep. Beep.*  
  
"He's back!" Joey shouted suddenly, a wide grin spreading uncontrollably across his face. "Yugi's back!"  
  
"Thank the Lord," Téa intoned, voice shaking with relief.  
  
Dana and Tristan threw their arms around each other spontaneously; then, as each noticed who they were hugging, both let go as if they were holding a hot coal, looking self-consciously at the floor. Bakura laughed at this, more out of pure joy than anything else. The happiness was almost tangible in the air.  
  
Serenity was watching Yugi. \I could have sworn I saw his eyelids flutter... \  
  
Then, the most beautiful thing she had ever seen happened. His violet eyes slowly opened. As she watched speechlessly, barely able to believe it, a hoarse, weak voice came from his mouth. "Where... am I?"  
  
"YUGI!"  
  
The room exploded in cheers as everyone turned toward their friend. Joey let out a whoop of sheer joy as Tristan, Dana, Bakura, and Téa all tripped from where they were to surround Yugi's bed. He blinked up at them, confused, and pushed himself into a sitting position.  
  
"You're in the hospital, Yugi," Tristan said. "D'you remember anything at all?"  
  
Yugi nodded, violet eyes haunted by the visions in his mind. "I was lost... I couldn't remember who I was or where I was... you guys brought me back."  
  
"Us?" Joey asked, pointing at himself.  
  
Yugi nodded. "Somehow, you reached me there. I heard you... you helped me remember who I am." He stopped for a moment, meeting the eyes of each one in turn. "Thank you. You guys saved my life."  
  
Suddenly the door banged open loudly and a group of doctors rushed in. "Clear-" began one. He broke off, staring. "Hold on. We got a call saying Yugi Moto wasn't breathing?"  
  
"Our monitors showed it, too," said a blonde nurse, looking perplexedly at the joyous group.  
  
"He's back, and he's awake!" Téa informed them, words tumbling over themselves in her sheer excitement.  
  
"This is amazing..." said the doctor, voice disbelieving. "We had thought..." He recovered as Yugi shuddered once, wavering slightly. "All right, kids. You're going to have to clear out for a while. Not the rest of the night..." seeing the protests about to come. "Just for a few minutes, so we can run some tests. We'll call you in a quarter hour or so. I'll be right back..." this directed to Yugi. "I need to get your chart and a few other things. Just hold tight, okay?" Yugi nodded, too tired out to speak. The doctor left silently, footsteps fading away down the dark hall.  
  
"We better go," Joey said reluctantly. "Yuge, we'll be back, okay?" Yugi nodded again, flashing that luminous smile. Joey brushed roughly at the tears that were suddenly in his eyes and grinned back. Slowly, Joey, Bakura, Tristan, Dana, and Téa filed out. Serenity was about to follow, when a voice stopped her.  
  
"Serenity, wait."  
  
She turned back to Yugi. He was watching her with those intense violet eyes. She frowned slightly, confused. "What's wrong?" she asked, coming back and sitting on the edge on his bed. For some reason, her heart was pounding.  
  
Yugi opened his mouth, then closed it again. He looked down at his hands suddenly, and then back at her. His voice came softly, hesitant. "Did... did you mean it?"  
  
"Mean... what?" Serenity's voice shook with nervousness. \What's he mean? \  
  
"When you..." Yugi drew in a deep breath and finished in barely more than a whisper. "When you said that... you loved me."  
  
Serenity froze. Her head spun and her ears rang with what she had just heard. Her eyes were wide and refused to blink, no matter how hard she tried. Her heart felt as if it would jump out of her chest any minute. \He heard that? \  
  
Yugi broke the gaze and looked down, face desolate. "I understand..." he said softly, a tear making its way down his pale face. "Never mind..."  
  
Serenity suddenly wasn't afraid anymore. "Yugi." He looked up at her. "I..." Her mind went blank "I..." \Just say it, genius! \  
  
"I love you."  
  
Yugi's eyes were wide, deep amethysts in his white face. "Really?" he whispered back, voice nearly inaudible.  
  
Serenity nodded dumbly. She didn't trust herself to speak. Her face was hot, and she knew that she had probably turned ten shades of red. She looked down, twisting her hands in her lap.  
  
"Serenity?"  
  
Almost against her will, she looked at him.  
  
"I love you, too."  
  
There it was. Those words. The ones she never thought she'd hear from him. The whole thing seemed so fuzzy now... like some sort of fantasy coming to life within her imagination. \This must be a dream. \  
  
Yugi and Serenity leaned forward at the same moment, almost as if they'd been cued to do so. She could hear him breathing, could see nothing but the violet of his eyes. They were so close to each other. Serenity only had time to think, \He loves me. \ Then their lips met in what was both Yugi's and Serenity's first kiss. \He loves me... \  
  
She wasn't sure how long it was before another voice cut in somewhat sheepishly. //Serenity?// She and Yugi pulled away quickly, both blushing furiously. She snapped her eyes to Yami, glad to have an excuse to look away and hide her red face.  
  
Yami's eyes were soft and understanding. //The doctors will be back any minute now. May I...// he hesitated. //May I speak with my aibou?// He looked anxiously at Yugi, and guiltily back to Serenity.  
  
Serenity nodded understandingly. She didn't dare trust her voice. Slowly she turned back to Yugi, who wore a faint blush as well. "Here's your Puzzle back," she whispered, putting it gently around his neck. "Yugi? Thank you. For everything." She could tell he was fighting to keep his eyes open, so she contented herself with blowing another kiss and scurrying out.  
  
It was a funny thing. When Serenity was younger, when she had first begun to realize that boys did not, indeed, have cooties, she had harbored a secret fantasy about what her first kiss would be like. She would be wearing a long, elegant dress of pale rose, or maybe silver so it would sparkle in the light of the crystal chandeliers. The mysterious boy would be wearing a black suit, and he would spin her as they danced to the soft music. Then they would go onto a marble balcony brimming with roses and he would look into her eyes, and they would share a romantic kiss under the stars.  
  
But this... this was nothing like what she had inagined. Her muddy, wrinkled school uniform was a poor excuse for the silvery gown of her fantasy; Yugi's white hospital gown was hardly a tuxedo. The plain white hospital room was about as far from marble balconies and crystal chandeliers as one could get, and the only rose was the slightly browned, battered bloom still stuck in her hair.  
  
No indeed, this was nothing like she had dreamed.  
  
...this was so, so much better.  
  
***  
  
...  
  
And that, my friends, is why it's called a Romance.  
  
Was that ending happy enough? Please say it was... I don't like it when people hate me. *looks at reviewers with sad, pleading, tear-filled eyes* I think I need a hug. Pwease?  
  
Anywho...  
  
There will be one final chapter, so it's not quite finished yet. I hope you guys stick with me until this one's over!  
  
Please drop me a review!  
  
Bye-bye! *waves* ^_^ 


	11. Epilogue: A Forever Promise

O_O  
  
Joey: *enters, eating a banana thoughtfully thrown by Aeyes* She's been like this ever since she got 100 reviews.  
  
Mittens no Hikari: O_O Three... digits... so... many... numbers...  
  
Joey: So, I will be takin' over temporarily. Ahem... *reads from a Post-it note*  
  
Kudos to:  
  
Anime-crazed33: Last chapter... Thanks so much for sticking with me all the way!  
  
firefly: Happy endings are just my thing. Dunno why... I read the first chappy of 'Spider Eyes.' I'll review when I get a free moment, but know my thoughts are... just wow.  
  
Rogue: Here is the very, very ending! Thanks for your review!  
  
DJ Rodriguez: *sniffles* Thanks for being such a faithful reviewer, DJ. 'Somebody's Eyes' was beautiful! Wedding... hmm, interesting idea... ^_^  
  
Nightlight5: Thank you... I'm glad that I wrote something that made someone happy. ^_^ You are awesome!  
  
Pooka228: Yay, indeed! ^_^  
  
Ryuujin Dragon King: Yeah, Yami didn't have a huge role, but he was in it, at least. Thanks for taking the time to review! I'm so glad you liked the story!  
  
Queen of the Sea: Thanks so much! We'll see, maybe I'll do another one.  
  
ShintaHimura: Um... okay? ^_^;; I'm assuming you've read it by now, so thanks!  
  
Tk Macintosh: Last chapter comin' atcha!  
  
Halacanno: Run, Yami, run! *giggles* Here's the really, truly ending!  
  
A Watcher: Ooo, I like that phrase. Funfun. Yes, Yami was most likely rather embarrassed at that point... ^_^  
  
Aeyes: *collects apple cores, banana peels, peach pits, etc.* As you can see, Joey got to all the fruits you threw. ^_^;; I'm glad you're happy with the story!  
  
AmunRa: Thanks! *blushes* I hope you feel better soon- and I love your stories, by the way!  
  
Sakura30: *sniffles* *hugs Sakura back* Last chapter... T_T  
  
melodygreenleaf: Th-thanks! I'm glad you like the pairing now!  
  
Dreamy-eyes1: *blushes beet-red* You really cried? Really? Actually, I've always wanted to be a writer... since I was four. Maybe I really can be... *is deep in thought*  
  
\Thoughts\  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own... lesse here... Yu-Gi-Oh, Post-it notes, the poem used later in the chapter (courtesy of 'Hey', an early-on reviewer), or anything else except what I do own.  
  
Joey: *puts down Post-it* That's about it!  
  
Mittens no Hikari: O_O Pwetty... numbers...  
  
Joey: ^_^;; Anywho, this is dedicated to any and all reviewers or anyone who has read this without reviewing. You all rule, and without you this never would have happened. Go, you!  
  
"I'm With You"  
  
Epilogue: A Forever Promise  
  
"Now, who can tell me the element symbolized by the letters 'Pt'?"  
  
Serenity's hand shot into the air. "Platinum," she quoted promptly.  
  
"Excellent, Serenity," praised the teacher, giving her a rare smile. Dana, who was sitting next to her, grinned and gave her friend a low-five beneath the lab table.  
  
\Chemistry's not too bad, \ Serenity thought to herself, smiling slightly. \It's not boring, at any rate. And my teacher was so nice about everything.\ After returning to school, Serenity had spoken with her teacher and arranged for a retake of the fateful quiz. She still felt her face color when she remembered that quiz.  
  
The bell rang loudly, jolting her out of her thoughts. She gathered up her books, mind moving on a different track.  
  
\Joey was so great about everything,\ she thought to herself, with more than a little surprise. \I expected him to get all protective again like when this whole thing started. But then, everyone was great about this whole thing... \  
  
***Flashback***  
  
"Joey?"  
  
"Yeah, sis?" her brother asked absently, looking at her while shifting in the uncomfortable hospital chairs.  
  
"Can I talk to you?"  
  
"Sure..." Joey said uncertainly, putting aside the magazine he held and rubbing his eyes, trying to wake himself up. "There a problem?"  
  
"No... at least I don't think so..." Serenity stammered. "I... I'm..."  
  
"Serenity, just tell me!" Joey rolled his eyes, impatient to hear the secret he knew his sister had been keeping for a long time.  
  
"Yugi and I are a couple now," she blurted out, shutting her eyes and waiting with bated breath for a reply. When none came, she opened one olive- green eye cautiously and peered at her older brother.  
  
Joey looked to be deep in contemplation, his dark eyes narrowed in thought. Finally, after what seemed an eternity, he looked at her and gave her a smile, surprising her greatly.  
  
"Congrats, sis," he said, grinning. "You couldn't have picked a better person."  
  
"You mean- you aren't mad or anything?" Serenity said, a bit put out by having gotten so worked up over nothing.  
  
"Naw," Joey dismissed the notion with a wave. "You got the right to make your own decisions, Serenity. Plus, I know Yugi too well to worry that he'd mess with ya. He's way too considerate for that."  
  
Serenity smiled and threw her arms around her older brother. "Thanks, Joey," she whispered. "Your support means a lot to me."  
  
"No prob, Serenity," Joey said, returning his little sister's affectionate embrace. "I couldn't get mad today even if I wanted to. Not after Yugi's close call." He was briefly silent. As Serenity pulled away, she immediately noticed his impish grin and the mischief in his brown eyes. "So, when he gets better, d'you think he'd like to see those home videos of you singing karaoke in Mom's high heels and that old sombrero?"  
  
Horror bloomed in Serenity's expression as she recalled exactly what videos Joey was referring to. "Joseph Wheeler, don't you dare even think of showing those to anyone! Especially not Yugi!" She glared as he began to laugh and seized the nearest object to her hands, which happened to be a chair cushion.  
  
"Hey! Stop!" Joey protested as she proceeded to launch a pillow attack on him. "Truce! Truce!"  
  
***End Flashback***  
  
\Telling Téa, Mai, and Bakura was easy, but Tristan and Duke were the ones I was worried about, \ Serenity reflected.  
  
***Flashback***  
  
"Awww!" Téa squealed. "You and Yugi are a couple? That's so sweet!"  
  
"Nice going, Serenity," Mai said, flashing her a thumbs-up.  
  
"Congratulations," Bakura said sincerely, a smile crossing his face. "Best of luck to you two." He winked, causing her face to turn bright scarlet.  
  
"Oh, I just can't believe it," gushed Téa. "It's like you two were made for each other!"  
  
Duke and Tristan were standing very quietly at the fringes of the group. Serenity looked at them and felt a very large pang of guilt. "I'm sorry, guys," she said softly.  
  
Duke spoke first. "It's all right, Serenity," he reassured her. "If that's what you want, then you should go for it." He twirled a lock of his black hair around his finger and gave her a grin.  
  
"Duke's right," Tristan said reluctantly. "It's okay." He smiled at her, but the smile was sad. Then he cleared all expression from his face as Bakura reminded the group the bell was about to ring. Serenity watched him go, feeling exceedingly guilty.  
  
***End Flashback***  
  
\I know Duke's dating that blonde cheerleader of his now, \ Serenity thought, stopping briefly to tie her shoelace. \He seems happy, anyway. But Tristan looked really sad. \ Suddenly her thoughts were halted as she noticed two people talking a short distance away from her.  
  
She did a double take. Tristan was talking to Dana, both her face and his own red enough to rival her hair. Dana was blushing shyly as Tristan rubbed the back of his head nervously and looked embarrassedly at his feet.  
  
\A happy ending after all, \ Serenity thought, watching as Dana handed Tristan a small sheet of paper- presumably, a phone number- as her face mantled until it resembled a cherry tomato. Their fingers brushed and they froze, staring at each other, before both flushed yet again and departed hurriedly, heads down. \I'm glad Tristan and Dana hit it off so well. And-\ she grinned wickedly. \Think of how I can tease Dana in Chemistry tomorrow! \  
  
Serenity stood up- and immediately collided with a tall, unknown person. With a loud thud, both crashed to the dusty floor. Serenity looked up, rubbing her head.  
  
"Oh gosh- I'm sorry!" she said hurriedly, as the person sat up and shook his head. He was wearing a uniform and a nametag that read "DJ."  
  
"No problem," he said, giving her a friendly smile and shrugging.  
  
"Hey! Serenity!" She blinked as she recognized Celeste's voice. She snatched a glance over her shoulder and saw her friend running toward her.  
  
"Wait- you're Serenity? Wheeler, I mean?" DJ looked surprised.  
  
Serenity nodded slowly. "Why?" she asked suspiciously.  
  
A grin spread over DJ's face. "No reason," he said. "Except that you may want to check your locker before you leave."  
  
"What-?"  
  
But he had already straightened his cap and left, whistling merrily.  
  
Celeste caught up to her. "You have to see!" she squealed, dragging Serenity along. "Come on!"  
  
"Why do I get the feeling everyone knows something I don't?" Serenity sighed, slightly annoyed, as she followed her friend. When she laid eyes on her locker, however, every trace of annoyance flew straight out the window.  
  
A huge bouquet of crimson roses was in her open locker, sprays of baby's breath and deep green ferns mixed in. The roses were perfect, gorgeous blooms, and even fifteen feet away she could smell the sweet scent.  
  
Serenity walked forward dazedly, eyes flickering from rose to rose. One dozen beautiful scarlet roses. She picked up the bouquet gently, and an elaborate, gold-trimmed card fell out. She pinned it to the locker with her foot before it could hit the ground, and slid it up till she could reach it with her hand. The handwriting was unmistakably Yugi's neat cursive. Feeling a bubble of happiness spreading inside her, she flipped open the card and read what was written inside.  
  
Dear Serenity:  
  
"Is love a fancy, or a feeling? No.  
  
It is immortal as immaculate Truth,  
  
'Tis not a blossom shed as soon as youth  
  
Drops from the stem of life-for it will grow,  
  
In barren regions, where no waters flow..."  
  
I love you, Serenity. Just wanted to make sure you didn't forget that!  
  
Love,  
  
Yugi  
  
Serenity had to brush happy tears from her eyes as she read the card over two more times. \This is so beautiful... \ the bell rang suddenly, making her start. For a brief moment she had forgotten she was even in school. For just that moment, she had been in a magical world all her own. She checked her watch. \I can just make the bus! \ Gently balancing the roses and her books, she slammed her locker shut with her knee and took off toward the bus stop.  
  
The city bus seemed to take forever in coming, and when it finally pulled into the stop, the ride itself dragged on even longer. She pacified herself by reading the lines of the poem again and imagining what she would say to Yugi when she reached her destination. \Come on, already! This is taking forever! \  
  
Finally she pulled the cord above her head as the white hospital building came slowly into view. A bell rang briefly, and the light of the 'Stop Requested' sign lit at the front of the bus.  
  
As the vehicle pulled to a stop, Serenity performed a complicated twist as she stepped out of the doors, being careful not to crush the roses' petals on the exit. Pushing open the hospital doors with a foot, she hopped in and, without even attempting the feat of the elevator, headed straight for the stairs.  
  
She came to a stop on the third floor, panting. Darting down the halls, dodging nurses and carts while precariously balancing her pile of binders, books, and roses, she made it to the room she was looking for.  
  
\Room 324. This is it. \ Serenity blinked at the door for a moment, debating how she should go about knocking. Finally she settled on using her elbow, requiring her to turn around partway.  
  
There was nothing but silence. \Yugi must be asleep or something. \ Giving up, she let her math book and notebook slide to the floor. Turning partway and straining to see over the bouquet she held, she felt her fingers touch the handle. She turned it and slipped quietly inside, putting her assorted objects on a table with a sigh of relief. She looked around for Yugi.  
  
He was standing outside on the balcony of his room, elbows resting on the rail, chin in hands, staring into the distance. He was dressed, his dark blue school uniform hanging a bit more loosely on his small frame then before. Sunlight cast his shadow across the balcony and played over his hair.  
  
Serenity crept softly over to the sliding door, which was slightly ajar. Holding her breath, she stepped silently onto the balcony.  
  
Yugi turned his head slightly. His eyes widened. "Serenity, why-"  
  
Serenity didn't let him say anything more. She threw her arms around him before he could even react. "Thank you so much," she murmured.  
  
"So you got the roses?" Yugi said softly, returning the hug.  
  
"Mmm-hmm," Serenity informed him. "How'd you get those?"  
  
Yugi sighed quietly. "I couldn't get to my garden, so I had them delivered. I'm glad you liked them." He smiled shyly.  
  
"Why did you go to all that trouble, though?" Serenity asked, pulling away to look into his violet eyes.  
  
Yugi blushed but didn't look away. "When you love someone, do you need a reason?"  
  
Serenity felt a ridiculously happy smile spreading across her face again. Somehow, she found she didn't care in the least.  
  
Yugi's breathing was slightly ragged, and Serenity felt a slight twinge of worry. "Come on, Yugi. Let's sit down or something. You know you aren't even supposed to be out of bed," she scolded gently, jerking her head at the bench nearby.  
  
Yugi let out a sigh of resignation and took a seat, Serenity close behind. He let out his breath shakily and leaned his head against the wall, eyes closing briefly. He looked slightly pale, and the shadows under his eyes were still visible.  
  
Serenity's good mood slowly dissolved into thoughtfulness. She could remember clearly the terror she had felt when Yugi had nearly died. \It was so close... things are so dangerous for him now. \ She shivered involuntarily.  
  
"Serenity? You cold?" Yugi was instantly concerned.  
  
She shook her head. "No. It's just... I'm so afraid that something like this will happen again. I don't know if I could handle it." She looked at him pleadingly. "Can you..."  
  
Yugi met her eyes with his level gaze. "Can I what?"  
  
Serenity realized suddenly just how foolish her question would sound. "Never mind. I was going to ask you to promise never to scare me like that again, but it's not like it's something you have control over."  
  
Yugi grinned. "Believe me, Serenity, if I'm given the choice I will not do anything like those five games ever again."  
  
"And the sixth?"  
  
Yugi sighed and looked down. Then he brought his eyes up to meet hers. "I can't promise you that, Serenity. I'm sorry."  
  
Serenity laid her head on his shoulder. "Then, will you promise me something else?" Her voice broke slightly, tears shining in her jade-green eyes.  
  
Yugi nodded. "If I can, then I promise I'll promise."  
  
Serenity giggled through her tears. "Will you promise me that no matter what happens, you and I will always be friends?"  
  
Yugi put his arm around her shoulder shyly. "That's a promise that I can make," he said, looking at her with his deep violet gaze and sunbeam smile. "D'you promise me too?"  
  
"Of course," Serenity whispered, closing her eyes and snuggling into his shoulder. As she let out a sigh of absolute happiness and peace, a fleeting thought ran through her mind.  
  
\I'm with you. \  
  
\Forever. \  
  
***  
  
O_O  
  
My story... it's over...  
  
Wow.  
  
Anyway, this is just gonna be a little ending note from me, so if you don't care, you can leave- there's no more story left. However...  
  
I'd like to say a few things.  
  
I have some Reviewer Awards to hand out! *takes out stack of shiny trophies*  
  
First, Shortest Review! This goes to... 'me', for her one-word review! Yay, 'me'! (This is weird, it sounds like I'm cheering for myself)  
  
Longest Review: Nightlight5! Which, by the way, was one of the funniest as well... ^_^  
  
Weirdest review: ShintaHimura, for saying they haven't yet read it but they will... *blinks* I still don't get that...  
  
Most faithful reviewers: Tie between Anime-crazed33 and A Watcher! They both reviewed all ten chapters as they came out!  
  
Most inspirational gift: Red Roses2, who gave me... roses!  
  
Best-timed review: Sakura30, whose review containing a hug came exactly when I was feeling really sad and sick. It really perked up my day!  
  
Compliment that made me blush in real life: Tie between DJ Rodriguez and Dreamy-eyes1! You guys, you two rock. You made me feel so happy, and gave me such a confidence booster!  
  
Most delicious missile weapon: Aeyes, for her tomato and the fruit from Chapter nine- which I never got to eat, by the way... *shoots dagger- eyes at Joey*  
  
Riddle-solver: Of course, this goes to Pooka228!  
  
Review most likely to come from an English teacher: Kouji Tenrai! Don't ask where I came up with this award... o.O  
  
Most dramatic reviewer: Halacanno! By the way, didja ever catch Yami?  
  
Most poetic review: Hey, who also gave me the poem Yugi sent to Serenity. Thankies, Hey!  
  
The 'You Rule' award: To all above-mentioned, plus:  
  
AmunRa, melodygreenleaf, Tk Macintosh, Queen of the Sea, Ryuujin Dragon King, firefly, Rogue, Bluemoon, rox, starfire, Capito Celcior, Scarlett and Scar, lexmark, helldragon4000, Miruchan-01, squallwis04, Rowan and Sakura, Viola, jster1983, and ChaosDragon2.  
  
*is crying as she finishes reading the names* When I began this story, I told myself not to hope for any more than four reviews per chapter, maybe fifty at the most. Then, when I hit fifty, I told myself I probably wouldn't go any higher than seventy-five. And now... I got ONE HUNDRED. 100. That's more than I ever could have hoped for. Thank you so much, everyone! *sniffles*  
  
A few last things:  
  
Anyone interested in another Yugi/Serenity romance? If so, drop a note in a review or e-mail. I have a few ideas, but I'm still considering.  
  
I'll miss you all! *salutes*  
  
(Possibly) Be seeing you soon,  
  
Your friend,  
  
Mittens no Hikari 


End file.
